UMASS/ AMHERST 


MANUAL 


ARBS  OF  HEALTH 


MASSACHUSETTS, 


CONTAINING  THE 


STATUTES  RELATING  TO  THE  PUBLIC  HEALTH, 

THE  MEDICAL  EXAMINER  LAWS,  THE  LAWS  RELATING  TO 
THE  REGISTRATION  OF  VITAL  STATISTICS, 


DECISIONS  OF  THE  SUPREME  COURT  OF  MASSACHUSETTS  RELATING 

'J,;;'-  ..         TO  THE  SAME. 


PREPARED  BT  DIRECTION  OP  THE 


STATE  BOAEB  OF  HEALTH, 


BOSTON  :  j^w^,  . 
WRIGHT  &  POTTER  PRINTING  CO.,  STATE  PRINTERS, 
18  Post  Office  Square.. 
1890. 


V, 


t 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2014 


https://archive.org/details/manualforuseofboOOmass_0 


MANUAL 

FOR  THE  USE  OF  ' 

BOARDS  OF  HEALTH 


of 


MASSACHUSETTS, 


CONTAINING  THE 


STATUTES  RELATING  TO  THE  PUBLIC  HEALTH, 

THE  MEDICAL  EXAMINER  LAWS,  THE  LAWS  RELATING  TO 
THE  REGISTRATION  OF  VITAL  STATISTICS, 


AND  THE 


DECISIONS  OF  THE  SUPREME  COURT  OF  MASSACHUSETTS  RELATING 
TO  THE  SAME. 


PREPARED  BY  DIRECTION  OF  THE 

STATE  BOAED  OF  HEALTH. 


BOSTON : 

WRIGHT  &  POTTER  PRINTING  CO.,  STATE  PRINTERS, 
18  Post  Office  Square. 
1890. 


'  LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

LEIAND  STANFORD  JUNIOR 
.       UNIVERSITY,  j 

CONTENTS. 


h  Introduction  

2.  General  powers  and  duties  of  the  State  Board  

3.  Town  and  city  boards  of  health  

4.  Nuisances,  sources  of  filth,  causes  of  sickness,  etc  

5.  Wet,  rotten  and  spongy  lands  

6.  Appeal  to  county  commissioners  

7.  Diseases  dangerous  to  public  health ;  Hospitals ;  Infected  persons  and  things ; 

Contagious  diseases  in  public  schools  * 

8.  Vaccination  

9.  Lying-in  hospitals  

10.  Protection  of  infants  

11.  Quarantine  

12.  Hydrophobia  

13.  Offensive  trades  

14.  Swine-slaughtering  associations  

15.  Pollution  of  rivers  and  sources  of  water  and  ice  supplies  

16.  Cemeteries,  burials,  tombs,  removal  and  transportation  of  bodies  . 

17.  Cremation  

18.  Contagious  diseases  among  cattle  

19.  Medical  societies,  degrees  or  diplomas  

20.  Color-blindness  and  defective  sight  

21.  Instruction  in  physiology  and  hygiene;  alcohol,  stimulants  and  narcotics 

22.  Sanitary  provisions  in  factories,  workshops,  school-houses  and  other  public 

buildings  ' 

General  and  Special  Laws  relative  to  Food  and  Drug  Inspection. 

23.  Food  and  drugs  

24.  Milk   

25.  Butter,  imitation  butter  and  cheese  

26.  Lard  

27.  Provisions,  and  animals  intended  for  slaughter  

28.  Poultry  

29.  Tainted  or  damaged  fish  

30.  Chocolate    

31.  Vinegar  ,  . 

32.  Rules  and  regulaLions  of  the  State;Boar,d  r^lafii  /e  to  food  and  drug  inspection, 

33.  Registration  of  Births,  Marriages,  Deaths  and  Divorces 

34.  Inquests.    Duties  of  Medical  Examiners  

35.  Public  health  statutes  enacted  in  1890   

36.  Summary  of  powers  and  duties  of  the  State  Board  of  Health  .... 

37.  Index  


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INTRODUCTION. 


This  Manual  of  the  Statutes  of  Massachusetts,  relative  to 
Public  Health,  has  been  prepared  at  the  direction  of  the  State 
Board  of  Health,  for.  the  use  of  local  boards  and  for  all  persons 
directly  interested  in  questions  which  pertain  to  public  health. 

A  former  manual  prepared  in  1882  by  Geo.  F.  Piper,  Esq., 
followed  quite  closely  through  the  first  ninety-six  sections  the 
numbering  employed  in  the  Public  Statutes.  In  consequence 
of  the  introduction  of  many  new  statutes,  enacted  since  1882, 
and  the  repeal  of  others,  such  numbering  has  necessarily  been 
abandoned  in  the  present  manual,  as  well  as  that  of  1886,  while 
the  general  order  of  subjects  is  preserved  as  closely  as  possible. 
A  slight  change  has  been  made  in  the  order  of  sections  under 
the  title  of  infectious  diseases,  hospitals,  etc. 

The  marginal  notes  contain  the  references  to  the  chapters  and 
sections  of  the  Public  Statutes,  and  also  to  such  health  laws  as 
have»been  enacted  since  1882. 

The  dates  in  heavier  type  opposite  some  of  the  sections  are 
the  years  in  which  those  statutes,  or  laws  essentially  the  same, 
together  with  their  amendments,  were  enacted. 

The  laws  relating  to  the  medical  examiners,  and  also  those 
relating  to  the  registration  of  vital  statistics,  both  of  which  are 
of  special  interest  to  the  medical  practitioner,  are  introduced  in 
the  present  edition  of  the  manual. 

The  State  registration  of  vital  statistics  appears  to  have  had 
its  origin  in  the  following  act  passed  in  1639  :  — 

"  Item,  that  there  be  records  kept  ...  of  the  days  of  every  marriage, 
birth  and  death  of  every  person  within  this  jurisdiction.1' — Colony  Laws, 
Chap.  III.,  1639. 

The  next  act  having  any  direct  sanitary  bearing  was  the 
following :  — 

Chapter  23  of  the  Acts  of  the  General  Assembly  of  Massachusetts  Bay 
(1692-1693).    Second  session. 

An  Act  for  prevention  of  common  nuisances  arising  by  slaughter-houses, 
still-houses,  etc.,  tallow-chandlers  and  curriers. 


4 


The  following  summary  of  the  public  health  acts  of  Massa- 
chusetts is  taken  from  the  report  of  the  Sanitary  Commission 
of  Massachusetts,  presented  to  the  Legislature  in  April,  1850. 

Titles  of  Acts  Relating  to  Public  Health;  Passed  by  the  State 
of  Massachusetts. 

Date. 

1692.  An  Act  for  prevention  of  common  nuisances  arising  by  slaughter- 
houses, still-houses,  etc  ,  tallow-chandlers  and  curriers.  Act  and  Laws  of 
Province  of  Massachusetts  Bay,  Ed.  1759  and  1771.  *  Page  15. 

1696.  Chap.  6.  An  Act  in  addition  to  an  Act  for  preventing  of  common 
nuisances  arising  from  slaughter-houses,  still-houses,  etc.    Page  68. 

1700.  An  Act  directing  the  admission  of  town  inhabitants.    Page  125. 

1701.  An  Act  providing  in  case  of  sickness.    Page  135.    Repealed  1797. 

1702.  An  Act  for  appointing  commissioners  of  sewer's.  Page  142. 
Repealed  1796. 

1708.  An  Act  in  addition  to  and  explanatory  of  the  Act  for  prevention 
of  common  nuisances.    Page  158. 

1709.  An  Act  for  regulating  of  drains  and  common  shores.  Page  161. 
Repealed  1796. 

1710.  An  Act  explaining  and  enlarging  of  the  Act  for  prevention  of 
common  nuisances  arising  by  slaughter-houses,  still-houses,  etc.,  tallow- 
chandlers  and  curriers.    Page  166. 

1730.  An  Act  empowering  courts  to  adjourn  and  remove  from  the  towns 
appointed  by  law  for  holding  courts  to  other  towns,  in  case  of  sickness 
from  small-pox.    Page  265.    Repealed  1797. 

1742.  An  Act  to  prevent  the  spreading  of  small-pox  and  other  infectious 
sickness,  and  to  prevent  the  concealing  the  same.    Repealed  1797. 

1744.  An  Act  in  addition  to  an  Act  for  regulating  drains  and  common 
shores.    Repealed  1796. 

1750.  An  Act  to  regulate  the  importation  of  German  and  other  passen- 
gers come  to  settle  in  the  Province.    Page  342. 

1751.  An  Act  in  addition  to  an  Act  made  and  passed  in  the  thirteenth 
year  of  King  William  the  Third,  entitled,  "  An  Act  providing  in  case  of  sick- 
ness?'1   Page  356.    Repealed  1797. 

1757.  An  Act  for  regulating  the  hospital  on  Rainsford's  Island,  and 
further  providing  in  case  of  sickness,    Page  375.    Repealed  1797. 

1758.  An  Act  in  addition  to  an  Act  entitled  "  An  Act  for  regulating  the 
hospital  on  Bainsford^s  Island,  and  further  providing  in  case  of  sickness.'1'' 
Page  378.    Repealed  1797. 

1763.  An  Act  in  addition  to  an  Act  relating  to  common  sewers.  Re- 
pealed 1797. 

1776.  An  Act  to  prevent  the  continuance  of  the  small-pox  in  the  town 
of  Boston,  and  to  license  inoculation  there  for  a  short  time.    Repealed  1797. 

1776.  An  Act  empowering  justices  of  the  court  of  general  sessions  of 
the  peace  in  the  several  counties  to  permit  inoculating  hospitals  to  be 
erected  in  said  counties.    Repealed  in  1792. 

1777.  An  Act  in  addition  to  the  above  Act.    Repealed  1792. 


5 


1785,  March  8.  An  Act  against  selling  unwholesome  provisions.  Vol.  I., 
page  224.    Repealed  1836. 

178"),  el une  7.  An  Act  for  preventing  common  nuisances.  Jams.  Ed. 
1801.    Vol.  I.,  page  241.    Repealed  1836. 

1787,  Feb.  28.  An  Act  for  the  due  regulation  of  licensed  houses.  Page 
374.  Repealed. 

1788,  March  26.  An  Act  for  suppressing  and  punishing  of  rogues,  vaga- 
bonds, common  beggars,  and  other  idle,  disorderly  and  lewd  persons.  Page 
411.    Repealed  1834.    Laws  1834,  page  206. 

171)2.  An  Act  providing  for  the  establishment  of  hospitals  for  inoculat- 
ing with  the  small-pox,  and  for  repealing  all  laws  heretofore  made  for  that 
purpose.    Repealed  1793. 

1793,  March  15.  An  Act  providing  hospitals  for  inoculation,  and  for 
preventing  infection  from  small-pox,  and  for  repealing  several  Acts  here- 
tofore made  for  that  purpose.    Vol.  II.    Rej^ealed  1837. 

1796,  Feb.  26.  An  Act  for  appointing  commissioners  of  sewers,  and 
making  provision  for  the  better  improvement  of  low  lands  in  certain  cases. 
Vol.  II.,  page  721.    Repealed  1836. 

1797,  Feb.  20.  An  Act  for  regulating  drains  an^  common  sewers.  Vol. 
II.,  page  752.    Repealed  1836. 

1797,  June  22.  An  Act  to  prevent  the  spreading  of  contagious  sickness. 
Vol.  II.,  page  788.    Repealed  1836. 

1798,  Feb.  27.  An  Act  in  addition  to  an  Act  entitled  "An  Act  for  sup- 
pressing rogues,  vagabonds,  common  beggars,  and  other  idle,  disorderly 
and  lewd  persons.    Vol.  II.,  page  812.    Repealed  1834. 

1799,  Feb.  13.  An  Act  to  empower  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Boston 
to  choose  a  board  of  health,  and  for  removing  and  preventing  the  nuisances 
in  said  town.    Vol.  II.,  page  837.    Repealed  June  20,  1799. 

1799,  June  29.  An  Act  to  empower  the  town  of  Boston  to  choose  a  board 
of  health,  and  for  removing  and  preventing  nuisances  in  said  town.  Vol. 
II.,  page  867. 

1799,  June  21.  An  Act  to  empower  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Salem 
to  choose  a  board  of  health,  and  for  removing  and  preventing  the  nuisances 
in  said  town.    Vol.  II.,  page  879. 

1800,  Feb.  26.  An  Act  in  addition  to  an  Act  entitled  "  An  Act  to  prevent 
the  spreading  of  contagious  diseases.'11    Vol.11.,  page  896.    Repealed  1836. 

1800,  March  4.  An  Act  in  addition  to  an  Act  entitled  "  An  Act  to  prevent 
common  nuisances.11    Vol.  II.,  page  921.    Repealed  1836. 

1800,  June  16.  An  Act  in  addition  to  an  Act  entitled  "  An  Act  to 
empower  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Salem  to  choose  a  board  of  health, 
and  for  removing  and  preventing  nuisances  in  said  town,11  and  for  repeal- 
ing part  of  said  Act.    Vol.  II.,  page  939. 

1802,  Feb.  22.  An  Act  to  empower  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  of 
Marblehead  to  choose  a  board  of  health,  and  for  removing  and  preventing 
nuisances  in  said  town.    Vol.  III.,  page  44. 

1803,  June  18.  An  Act  in  addition  to  an  Act  entitled  "An  Act  to 
empower  the  town  of  Boston  to  choose  a  board  of  health,  and  for  removing 
and  preventing  nuisances  in  said  town.11    Vol.  III.,  page  161. 

1804,  March  7.    An  Act  to  repeal  a  part  of  an  Act  entitled  "An  Act  to 


6 


empower  the  town  of  Boston  to  choose  a  board  of  health,  and  for  removing 
and  preventing  nuisances,"  and  for  making  further  additions  thereto  Vol. 
III.,  page  218. 

1809,  June  16.  An  Act  in  further  addition  to  an  Act  entitled  "  An  Act  to 
entitle  the  town  of  Boston  to  choose  a  board  of  health,  and  for  removing 
and  preventing  nuisances."    Session  Laws,  1809.    Page  11. 

1810,  Feb.  27.  An  Act  to  empower  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  of 
Plymouth  to  choose  a  board  of  health,  and  for  removing  and  preventing 
nuisances  in  said  town.    Session  Laws,  1810.    Page  89. 

1810,  March  6.  An  Act  to  diffuse  the  benefits  of  inoculation  for  the  cow- 
pox.    Session  Laws,  1810.    Page  204.    Repealed  1836. 

1810,  March  6.  An  Act  in  further  addition  to  an  Act  entitled  "  An  Act 
to  empower  the  town  of  Boston  to  choose  a  board  of  health,  and  for  remov- 
ing and  preventing  nuisances."    Session  Laws,  1810.    Page  221. 

1816,  June  20.  An  Act  to  empower  the  town  of  Boston  to  choose  a  board 
of  health,  and  to  prescribe  their  power  and  duty.  Session  Laws,  1816. 
Page  258. 

1818,  June  12.  An  Act  authorizing  the  town  of  Charlestoivn  to  establish 
a  board  of  health.    Session  Laws,  1818.    Page  14. 

1821,  June  26.  An  Act  to  empower  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Lynn 
to  establish  a  board  of  health,  and  for  removing  nuisances  in  said  town. 
Session  Laws,  1821.    Page  588. 

1822,  Feb.  23.  An  Act  to  establish  the  city  of  Boston.  Session  Laws, 
1822.    Page  734. 

1827,  March  2.  An  Act  authorizing  the  town  of  Cambridge  to  establish 
a  board  of  health.    Session  Laws,  1827.    Page  473. 

1835,  Nov.  4.  REVISED  STATUTES.—  Went  into  operation  April  30, 
1836. 

Chap.  21.  On  the  preservation  of  the  public  health;  quarantine; 
nuisances  and  offensive  trades.    Pages  207-214. 

Chap.  131.    Of  offences  against  the  public  health.    Page  742. 
1837,  April  20.    An  Act  relating  to  alien  passengers. 

1837,  April  20.  An  Act  concerning  the  public  health.  Supt.  Rev.  Stat. 
Page  58. 

1838,  April  20.  An  Act  to  repeal  certain  provisions  of  the  law  in  relation 
to  the  small-pox.    Ibid.,  page  82. 

1840,  March  18.    An  Act  concerning  the  small-pox.    Ibid.,  page  149. 

1841,  March  17.  An  Act  in  relation  to  main  drains  and  common  sewers. 
Ibid.,  page  196. 

1842,  March  3.  An  Act  relating  to  the  registry  and  returns  of  births, 
marriages  and  deaths.    Ibid.,  page  240. 

1844,  March  16.  An  Act  relating  to  the  registry  and  returns  of  births, 
marriages  and  deaths.    Ibid.,  page  308. 

1848,  April  18.  An  Act  to  repeal  certain  provisions  of  law  in  relation 
to  the  small-pox.    Ibid.,  page  451. 

1848,  May  10.    An  Act  concerning  alien  passengers. 

1849,  May  2.    An  Act  in  relation  to  the  public  health.    Ibid.,  page  549. 
1849,  May  2.    An  Act  relating  to  the  registration  of  births,  marriages 

and  deaths.   Ibid.,  page  545. 


7 


1850,  March  20.  An  Act  relating  to  alien  passengers.  Session  Laws. 
Pages  338  and  467. 

1850,  March  21.  An  Act  in  addition  to  an  Act  relating  to  the  public 
health.    Ibid.,  page  841. 


Following  each  section  will  be  found  the  decisions  of  the 
supreme  court  of  the  State  upon  the  subject  matter  of  that 
section. 

The  statutes  impose  upon  boards  of  health  the  duty  of  pro- 
tecting the  people  from  those  causes  and  influences  which  ma}' 
injuriously  affect  their  health.  In  the  words  of  Judge  Wells,  in 
the  case  of  City  of  Salem  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Company,  "  Their 
action  is  intended  to  be  prompt  and  summary.  They  are 
clothed  with  extraordinary  powers  for  the  protection  of  the 
community  from  noxious  influences  affecting  life  and  health  ; 
and  it  is  important  that  their  proceedings  should  be  delayed  as 
little  as  possible.  Delay  might  defeat  all  beneficial  results  ; 
and  the  necessity  of  the  case,  and  the  importance  of  the  public 
interests  at  stake,  justify  prompt  action." 

Office  of  the  State  Board  of  Health, 
Boston,  June,  1890. 


MANUAL. 


GENERAL  TOWERS  AND  DUTIES  OF  STATE  BOARD. 

1.  The  governor  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  council  state  board  of 

&  health. 

shall  appoint  seven  persons  who  shall  constitute  the  state  board 

of  health.    The  persons  so  appointed  shall  hold  their  offices  for  How  appointed. 

seven  years  ;  provided  that  the  terms  of  office  of  the  seven  first  Term  of  office. 

appointed  shall  be  so  arranged  that  the  term  of  one  shall  expire 

each  year.    All  vacancies  on  said  board,  whether  occurring  by  Vacancies,  how 

expiration  of  term,  or  otherwise,  shall  be  filled  by  the  governor  is8G,ioi,§i. 

with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  council. 

2.  The  board  shall  be  provided  with  rooms  at  the  expense  Rooms  to  be 
of  the  state  and  shall  hold  meetings  each  month  on  a  day  fixed  Meetings! 
by  itself,  and  at  such  other  times  as  may  be  needful.    It  shall  J^JJ™8" 
make  its  own  by-laws,  and  shall  make  a  report  of  its  doings  to  isse,  101,  §  2. 
the  governor  and  council  on  or  before  the  thirty-first  day  of 
December  in  each  year,  such  report  being  made  up  to  the 
thirtieth  day  of  September  inclusive. 

3.  The  board  shall  elect  a  secretary,  who  shall  be  the  Secretary, 
executive  officer,  and  shall  hold  office  during  the  pleasure  of  the 
board.    He  shall  perform  or  superintend  the  work  prescribed  by  Duties, 
law  for  the  state  board  of  health,  and  as  directed  by  the  board, 

and  such  other  duties  as  the  board  may  require.    He  shall  not  Secretary  pro 

J       ^  tern. 

be  ex  officio  a  member  of  the  board,  but  the  board  may,  when- 
ever it  shall  be  deemed  necessary,  elect  one  of  the  members 
secretary  pro  tempore  who  may  in  the  absence  or  disability  of 
the  secretary  perform  the  duties  of  that  officer.  The  secretary  Salary  of  secre- 
shall  receive  from  the  treasury  an  annual  salary  of  three  is89,'37o. 
thousand  dollars  and  his  necessary  travelling  expenses  incurred 
in  the  performance  of  official  duties.    No  member  of  the  board  Expenses  of 

1  board  and  office. 

shall  receive  any  compensation  ;  but  the  actual  personal  expenses  1886, 101,  §  3. 
of  any  member  while  engaged  in  the  duties  of  the  board  shall  be 


10 


Certain  general 
powers  and 
duties  of  the 
state  board  of 
health. 

P.  S.,  c  80,  §  1. 
1886,  101,  §  4. 


paid  from  the  treasury,  after  they  have  been  audited  by  the 
board.  All  other  necessary  expenses  arising  in  the  secretary's 
office  or  from  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of  the  board  shall  be 
paid  out  of  the  treasury  in  the  same  manner  as  those  of  the  dif- 
ferent departments  of  the  government. 

4.  The  state  board  of  health  shall  take  cognizance  of  the 
interests  of  health  and  life  among  the  citizens  of  the  Common- 
wealth. It  shall  make  sanitary  investigations  and  inquiries  in 
respect  to  the  causes  of  disease,  and  especially  of  epidemics  and 
the  sources  of  mortality  and  the  effects  of  localities,  employ- 
ments, conditions,  and  circumstances,  on  the  public  health ;  and 
shall  gather  such  information  in  respect  to  those  matters  as  it 
may  deem  proper  for  diffusion  among  the  people.  It  shall 
advise  the  government  in  regard  to  the  location  and  other  sani- 
tary conditions  of  any  public  institutions. 


The  state  board  of  health  was  originally  established  by  chap.  420, 
Acts  of  1869. 

Its  powers  were  subsequently  enlarged  by  chap.  167,  Acts  of  1871, 
and  chap.  183,  Acts  of  1878. 

By  chap.  291,  Acts  of  1879,  its  powers  were  transferred  to  the  newly 
established  state  board  of  health,  lunacy  and  charity. 

By  chap.  101,  Acts  of  1886,  the  state  board  of  health  was  re-estab- 
lished, and  its  powers  were  still  further  enlarged  by  chap.  274,  Acts  of 
1886,  and  further  by  chap.  375,  Acts  of  1888. 


Further  duties 
in  case  of  con- 
tagious diseases. 
P.  8.,  c.  80,  §  2. 


1879 


State  board 
shall  have  co- 
ordinate powers 
with  local 
boards. 


5.  If  small-pox  or  any  other  contagious  or  infectious  dis- 
ease dangerous  to  the  public  health  exists,  or  is  likely  to  exist, 
in  any  place  within  the  state,  the  state  board  shall  investigate 
the  same,  and  the  means  of  preventing  the  spread  thereof,  and 
shall  consult  thereon  with  the  local  authorities,  and  shall  have 
co-ordinate  powers  as  a  board  of  health,  in  every  place,  with 
the  board  of  health  or  health  officer  thereof,  or  with  the  mayor 
and  aldermen  or  the  selectmen,  if  no  such  board  or  officer 
exists  in  such  place. 


Towns  may 
choose  board 
Of  health,  etc., 
or  the  select- 
men may  act. 
P.  8.,  c.  80,  §3. 


1797 
1817 


TOWN  AND  CITY  BOARDS  OF  HEALTH. 

6.  A  town,  respecting  which  no  provision  is  made  by  special 
law  for  choosing  a  board  of  health,  may,  at  its  annual  meeting 
or  at  a  meeting  legally  warned  for  the  purpose  choose  a  board 
of  health  by  ballot,  to  consist  of  not  less  than  three  nor  more 
than  nine  persons  ;  or  may  choose  a  health  officer.  If  no  such 
board  or  officer  is  chosen,  the  selectmen  shall  be  the  board  of 
health. 


n 


7.  If  a  person  elected  a  member  of  a  board  of  health  in  any  Vacancy  in 

...  ,  #  local  board  by 

town,  respecting  which  no  provision  is  made  by  special  law  for  refusal  to  accept 
choosing  a  board  of  health,  after  being  duly  notified  of  his  hi  led.' 
election  in  the  manner  in  which  town  officers  are  required  to  be  188o>  30',§  lm 
notified,  refuses  or  neglects  to  accept  said  ollice,  or  if  a  mem- 
ber of  a  board  of  health  in  such  town  declines  further  service, 
or  from  change  of  residence  or  otherwise  becomes  unable  to 
attend  to  the  duties  of  the  board,  the  remaining  members 
shall,  in  writing,  give  notice  of  the  fact  to  the  selectmen  of 
such  town,  and  the  two  boards  shall  thereupon,  after  giving 
public  notice  of  at  least  one  week,  jointly  preceed  to  fill  such 
vacancy. 

8.  Except  where  different  provision  is  made  by  law,  the  city  city  council 

•i    j.'  •  _  i      11      "  •  may  appoint 

council  of  a  city  may  appoint  a  board  of  health  ;  may  constitute  such  board;  or 

.  ,  •   •  ,  •  8haU  it^lf  act. 

either  branch  or  such  council,  or  a  joint  or  separate  committee  p.  s.,  c.  so,  §  4. 
of  their  body,  a  board  of  health,  either  for  general  or  special 
purposes  ;  and  may  prescribe  the  manner  in  which  the  powers 
and  duties  of  the  board  shall  be  exercised  and  carried  into 
effect.  In  default  of  the  appointment  of  a  board  with  full  1821 
powers,  the  city  council  shall  have  the  powers  and  perform  the 
duties  prescribed  to  boards  of  health  in  towns. 

Where,  by  an  ordinance  of  a  city,  two  members  of  the  board  of 
mayor  and  aldermen,  and  three  members  of  the  common  council,  were 
constituted  the  board  of  health,  and  no  provision  as  to  the  mode  of 
appointment  was  made  by  the  ordinance,  or  by  the  joint  rules  and 
orders  of  the  city  council,  but  the  orders  of  each  branch  provided  that 
all  committees  should  be  appointed  by  the  mayor  and  the  president  of 
the  common  council  respectively,  it  was  held  that  the  members  of  the 
joint  committee,  constituted  by  the  ordinance  a  board  of  health,  were 
duly  appointed  by  the  presiding  officers  of  each  branch,  and  that  the 
board  so  constituted  and  appointed  was  legally  organized. 

Taunton  v.  Taylor,  116  Mass.  254. 

Where  the  city  council  constitutes  the  board  of  health,  the  power 
to  make  regulations  as  it  judges  necessary  for  the  public  health  and 
safety  respecting  nuisances,  sources  of  tilth  and  causes  of  sickness, 
may  as  well  be  exercised  by  an  ordinance  as  by  any  other  form  of 
regulation. 

Commonwealth  v.  Patch,  97  Mass.  224. 
In  default  of  the  appointment  of  a  board  of  health,  and  where  the 
city  council  constitutes  the  board  of  health,  an  ordinance  which  pro- 
hibits the  keeping  or  maintaining  swine  within  certain  districts  of  the 
city,  under  a  penalty  not  exceeding  twenty  dollars  for  each  offence,  is 
valid  as  a  health  regulation. 

Commonwealth  v.  Patch,  97  Mass.  221. 


L2 


It  is  a  matter  of  considerable  doubt  whether  the  prohibition  of  offen- 
sive trades  is  the  proper  subject  of  an  ordinance  or  by-law,  because 
that  matter  is  specially  provided  for  by  statute,  and  to  prohibit  their 
exercise  in  any  particular  locality  in  a  town  or  city  by  a  by-law  or 
ordinance  would  interfere  with  the  right  of  appeal  to  a  jury  which  the 
statutes  secure. 

Commonwealth  v.  Patch,  97  Mass.  223. 

appjfn™ay  Every  such  board  of  health  may  appoint  a  physician  to 

ph88iCca8o  §5  ^e  board,  wno  shall  hold  his  office  during  its  pleasure. 

1816  10.    Such  board  shall  establish  the  salary  or  other  compensa- 

Compensation  tion  of  such  physician,  and  shall  regulate  all  fees  and  charges 

of  phyeician,  *•    ^  '  °  ° 

etc.  of  persons  employed  by  it  in  the  execution  of  the  health  laws 

p.  s.,  c.  so,  §  c.        1  1    J  J 

and  of  its  own  regulations. 

1816  11 .    Present  members  of  boards  of  health  of  cities  by  appoint- 

bers  of'cUy"1"    nient  under  chapter  one  hundred  and  thirty-three  of  the  statutes 
undeTSt! i877^b  °f  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy-seven,  shall  continue 
in3office?maiQ    to  no^  otWca  during  the  terms  for  which  they  were  appointed, 
p.  s.,  c.  so,  §  7.  un[ess  sooner  removed  as  provided  by  law. 
1 877 

Boards  of  health  ^*  ^n  eacn  city'  except  Boston,  in  which  a  majority  of  the 
to  be  appointed  voters  shall  have  so  voted  according  to  law,  there  shall  be  a 

in  cities,  when.  »  7 

jgyy  board  of  health,  consisting  of  the  city  physician,  and  two 

persons,  not  members  of  the  city  council,  appointed  by  the 
Term  of  office,  mayor  and  aldermen.  The  term  of  office  of  the  appointed 
p.™°Jc/80?§ 8.  members  shall  be  two  years,  and  one  of  them  shall  retire  from 
office  on  the  first  Monday  of  February  in  each  year.  If  such 
board  is  not  already  in  existence,  the  mayor  and  aldermen  shall 
in  January  next  after  the  vote  of  the  city  authorizing  such 
board  appoint  two  members,  one  for  one  year,  and  the  other  for 
two  years  ;  and  the  board  shall  enter  on  its  duties  on  the  first 
Monday  of  February  after  such  appointment.  All  vacancies 
occurring  in  boards  already  in  existence  or  in  those  hereafter 
constituted  shall  be  filled  by  the  mayor  with  the  approval  of 
the  board  of  aldermen.  Each  member  so  appointed  shall  be 
subject  to  removal  by  the  mayor  for  cause,  and  shall  receive 
such  compensation  as  the  city  council  may  from  time  to  time 
determine. 

Under  Pub.  Stats  ,  chap.  80,  sect.  8  (Statute  of  1877,  chap.  133),  which 
provides  that  in  each  of  the  cities  of  the. Common  wealth,  except  Boston, 
the  mayor  and  aldermen  shall  appoint  two  persons  "who  together 
with  the  city  physician  shall  constitute  the  board  of  health  of  such 
city ;  "  and  under  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sect.  15  (Statute  of  1878,  chap. 
21),  which  provides  that,  "  in  the  cities  of  the  Commonwealth  where 


13 


the  city  physician  is  ex  officio  a  member  of  the  board  of  health,  said 
city  physician  shall  be  appointed  by  the  mayor,  with  the  approval  of 
the  board  of  aldermen,  for  a  term  of  three  years,"  the  office  of  city 
physician  is  established  in  a  city  whose  charter  and  ordinances  make 
no  provision  in  terms  for  such  an  office.* 

If  a  statute  fixes  the  term  of  office  of  an  officer  of  a  city,  who  is  to 
be  appointed  by  the  mayor  with  the  approval  of  the  board  of  aldermen, 
it  is  unnecessary  that  the  term  of  his  office  should  be  expressed  either 
in  the  nomination  of  the  mayor  or  in  the  approval  by  the  board  of 
aldermen. 

Where  a  city  physician  is  ex  officio  a  member  of  the  board  of  health 
his  title  to  his  office  may  be  tried  by  an  information  in  the  nature  of  a 
quo  warranto. 

If  a  person  is  wrongfully  holding  a  public  office  he  may  be  ousted 
on  an  information  in  the  nature  of  a  quo  warranto,  although  the  term 
of  the  person  who  was  entitled  to  the  office  when  the  information  was 
filed  expires  before  judgment  is  rendered. 

Commonwealth  v.  Swasey,  133  Mass.  538. 


13.  Such  boards  shall  organize  annually  by  the  choice  of  How  to  be 

°  ^     *>  organized. 

one  of  their  number  as  a  chairman  ;  they  may  also  choose  a  p-  s.,  c.  so,  §  9. 
clerk,  not  a  member  of  the  board,  and  make  such  rules  and' 

1877 

regulations  for  their  own  government  and  for  the  government 
of  all  subordinate  officers  in  their  department  as  they  may 
deem  expedient. 

14.  Such  boards  may  exercise  all  the  powers  vested  in,  and  ^°tYeesrs  and 
shall  perform  all  the  duties  prescribed  to,  city  councils  or  mayors  p-s-> c-  80»  § 10- 
and  aldermen  as  boards  of  health,  under  the  statutes  and 

1  &  7  7 

ordinances  in  force  in  their  respective  cities  on  the  seventeenth 
day  of  May  in  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy-seven  ; 
and  may  appoint  such  subordinate  officers,  agents  and  assistants 
as  they  may  deem  necessary,  and  may  fix  their  compensation 
and  that  of  their  clerk  ;  but  the  whole  amount  of  such  compen- 
sation shall  not  exceed  the  sum  appropriated  therefor  by  the 
city  council. 

15.  In  each  city  such  board  of  health  shall  annually,  in  To  make  annual 
January,  present  to  the  city  council  a  report  made  up  to  and  p.Ps.f 1'.  80,  §  n. 
including  the  thirty-first  day  of  the  preceding  December,  and 
containing  a  full  and  comprehensive  statement  of  its  acts  dur-  1^77 

ing  the  year,  and  a  review  of  the  sanitary  condition  of  the  city ; 
it  shall  also,  when  the  city  council  or  the  standing  committee 
thereof  on  finance  so  requires,  send  to  the  auditor  of  accounts  an 
estimate  in  detail  of  the  appropriations  required  by  its  depart- 
ment during  the  next  financial  year. 


14 


12, 


May  enforce 
regulations  as 
to  house 
drainage. 
P.S.,  c.  8 

1702 
1877 
1881 


Cities  to  vote 
on  acceptance 
of  five  preced- 
ing sections, 
when. 

Public  Statutes, 
c.  80,  §  13. 


187J) 


Towns  may 
authorize 
boards  of  health 
to  make 

regulations  as  to 
house  drainage 
and  its  connec- 
tion with 
sewers. 
1889,  108. 


City  or  town 
may  contract 
for  the  disposal 
of  garbage, etc. 
1889,  377. 


In  case  of 
epidemic,  etc., 
boards  of  health 
may  be 
appointed  in 
cities  not  accept- 
ing, etc. 

P.  S.,  c.  80,  §14. 

187J> 

City  physician 

how  appointed, 

when  ex  officio 

a  member  of 

board ;  how 

removed. 

P.  S.,  c.  80,  §  15. 

1878 

Board  of 
health  may 
appoint 
agents,  etc. 
P.S.,  c.  80,  §  16. 


1866 
1879 


16.  Such  boards  may  prepare  and  enforce  in  their  respec- 
tive cities  such  regulations  as  they  may  deem  necessary  for  the 
safety  and  health  of  the  people,  with  reference  to  house  drain- 
age and  its  connection  with«public  sewers,  where  a  public  sewer 
abuts  the  estate  to  be  drained. 

17.  If  at  any  time  a  city  has  not  voted  to  accept  the  five 
preceding  sections,  or  chapter  one  hundred  and  thirty- three  of 
the  statutes  of  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy-seven, 
and  fifty  voters  residing  therein  present  a  written  request  to 
that  effect  thirty  days  prior  to  any  meeting  for  the  election  of 
city  officers  therein,  the  mayor  and  aldermen  shall  notify  and 
warn  the  legal  voters  thereof  to  vote  upon  the  acceptance  of 
said  sections  at  such  election. 

18.  Any  town  may  authorize  its  board  of  health  to  make 
and  enforce  in  such  town  such  regulations  as  said  board  may 
deem  necessary  for  the  safety  and  health  of  the  people  with 
reference  to  house  drainage  and  its  connection  with  public 
sewers,  where  a  public  sewer  abuts  the  estate  to  be  drained. 
'Whoever  violates  any  such  regulation  shall  forfeit  a  sum  not 
exceeding  one  hundred  dollars. 

19.  Any  city  or  town  may,  by  its  board  of  aldermen,  select- 
men, board  of  health  or  other  officer  or  officers  having  in  charge 
the  disposition  of  the  garbage,  refuse  and  offal  of  such  city  or 
town,  contract  for  a  term  of  years  for  the  disposition  of  such 
garbage,  refuse  and  offal  by  cremation  or  otherwise. 

20.  In  case  of  a  severe  epidemic,  or  other  danger  to  the 
public  health,  the  mayor  and  aldermen  of  the  city  where  there 
is  no  board  of  health  may,  upon  the  request  of  one  hundred 
voters  residing  therein,  appoint  such  a  board  to  act  during  the 
emergency,  with  the  powers  and  duties  of  a  board  of  health 
duly  appointed  under  section  eight  [of  chapter  so,  Public  statutes]. 

21.  In  eities  where  the  city  physician  is  ex  officio  a  member 
of  the  board  of  health,  he  shall  be  appointed  by  the  mayor, 
with  the  approval  of  the  board  of  aldermen,  for  a  term  of  three 
years,  subject  to  removal,  for  cause,  by  the  same  authority. 

22.  The  board  of  health  in  a  city  or  town  may  appoint  an 
agent  or  agents  to  act  for  it  in  cases  of  emergency,  or  when  it 
cannot  be  conveniently  assembled  ;  and  such  agent  so  appointed 
shall  have  all  the  authority  which  the  board  appointing  him 
had  ;  but  he  shall,  within  two  days,  report  his  action  in  each 
case  to  it  for  its  approval,  and  shall  be  directly  responsible  to 


15 

it  and  under  its  control  and  direction.  An  agent  appointed  to 
make  sanitary  inspections  may  make  complaint  in  cases  of 
violation  of  any  law,  ordinance,  or  by-law  relating  to  the  public 
health  in  a  city  or  town. 

23.  The  board  of  health  of  a  city  or  town  shall  retain  To  retain 

J  charge  of 

charge  of  any  case  arising  under  the  provisions  of  this  chapter  case^aft^er  act- 
in  which  it  shall  have  acted,  to  the  exclusion  of  the  overseers  of  p.  s.,  c.  so,  §  17. 
the  poor.  1874 

NUISANCES,   SOURCES  OF  FILTH,  CAUSES  OF  SICKNESS,  ETC. 

24.  The  board  of  health  of  a  town  shall  make  such  regula-  Board  of  health 

to  make  regula- 
tions as  it  "judges  necessary  for  the  public  health  and  safety,  tions  respecting 

.  J  .  nuisances,  etc. 

respecting  nuisances,  sources  of  filth  and  causes  of  sickness,  p.  s.,  c  so,§  is. 


1797 


within  its  town,  or  on  board  of  vessels  within  the  harbor  of 
such  town,  and  respecting  articles  which  are  capable  of  con- 
taining or  conveying  infection  or  contagion,  or  of  creating 
sickness,  brought  into  or  conveyed  from  its  town,  or  into  or 
from  any  vessel.  Whoever  violates  any  such  regulation  shall 
forfeit  a  sum  not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars. 

The  keeping  of  swine  may  be  prohibited  as  a  sanitary  regulation. 
The  prohibition  may  apply  to  the  entire  town  or  city,  or  only  to  a  part 
of  the  town  or  city,  if  that  part  is  so  situated  as  to  require  peculiar 
and  exceptional  provisions. 

Commonwealth  v.  Patch,  97  Mass.  221. 

A  regulation  that  no  person  shall  remove,  cart,  or  carry  through  any 
of  the  streets,  lanes  or  alleys  of  a  city,  any  house-dirt,  refuse,  offal, 
filth  or  animal  or  vegetable  substance  from  any  of  the  dwelling-houses 
or  other  places  occupied  by  the  inhabitants,  in  any  cart,  wagon,  truck* 
hand-cart  or  other  vehicle,  unless  such  person  so  removing,  together 
with  the  cart,  shall  be  duly  licensed  for  that  employment  and  purpose 
by  the  mayor  and  aldermen,  upon  such  terms  and  conditions  as  they 
shall  deem  the  health,  comfort,  convenience  or  interest  of  the  city 
require,  on  pain  of  forfeiting  a  sum  not  less  than  three  dollars  nor 
more  than  twenty,  is  valid. 

Vandine,  petitioner,  6  Pickering,  187 ;  135  Mass.  490. 

25.    The  board  shall  give  notice  of  all  regulations  made  by  To  give  notice 
it  by  publishing  the  same  in  some  newspaper  of  its  town,  or,  p. se.fS!aso?§sw. 
where  there  is  no  such  newspaper,  by  posting  them  up  in  some  igl6 
public  place  in  the  town.    Such  notice  shall  be  deemed  legal 
notice  to  all  persons. 

Notice  must  be  given  of  general  regulations  prescribed  by  the  board 
before  parties  can  be  held  in  fault  for  a  disregard  of  their  require- 


V 


16 


ments.  But  although  such  general  regulations  may  seriously  interfere 
with  the  enjoyment  of  private  property,  and  disturb  the  exercise  of 
valuable  private  rights,  no  previous  notice  to  parties  so  to  be  affected 
by  them  is  necessary  to  their  validity.  They  belong  to  that  class  of 
police  regulations  to  which  all  individual  rights  of  property  are  held 
subject,  whether  established  directly  by  enactments  of  the  legislative 
power,  or  by  its  authority  through  boards  of  local  administration. 
City  of  Salem  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Company,  98  Mass.  443. 

S^?m/«^ealth  26.  The  board  shall  examine  into  all  nuisances,  sources  of 
5£  a°d  abate    filth  and  causes  of  sickness,  within  its  town,  or  in  any  vessel 

nuisances,  etc.  7  '  J 

p.s.,  c.  so,  §  20.  within  the  harbor  of  such  town,  that  may  in  its  opinion  be 
1797  injurious  to  the  health  of  the  inhabitants,  and  shall  destroy, 

remove,  or  prevent  the  same  as  the  case  may  require. 
to?n°miiMneceB,      27-    Tue  board  or  the  health  officer  shall  order  the  owner 
owne?ated  by    or  occupant  at  his  own  expense  to  remove  any  nuisance,  source 
p.s.,  c.80,  §  2i.  Qf  filth,  or  cause  of  sickness,  found  on  private  property,  within 
1797  twenty-four  hours,  or  such  other  time  as  it  deems  reasonable, 

after  notice  served  as  provided  in  the  following  section  ;  and  if 
the  owner  or  occupant  neglects  so  to  do,  he  shall  forfeit  a  sum 
not  exceeding  twenty  dollars  for  every  day  during  which  he 
knowingly  permits  such  nuisance  or  cause  of  sickness  to  remain 
after  the  time  prescribed  for  the  removal  thereof. 


The  board  may  order  the  removal  of  a  nuisance  without  previous 
notice  to  the  owner  or  occupant,  and  without  any  opportunity  by  him 
to  be  heard. 

City  of  Salem  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Company,  98  Mass.  443. 
In  the  above  case,  Wells,  J.,  says,  in  relation  to  boards  of  health: 
"Their  action  is  intended  to  be  prompt  and  summary.  They  are 
clothed  with  extraordinary  powers  for  the  protection  of  the  commu- 
nity from  noxious  influences  affecting  life  and  health,  and  it  is  impor- 
tant that  their  proceedings  should  be  embarassed  and  delayed  as  little 
as  possible  by  the  necessary  observance  of  formalities.  Although 
notice  and  opportunity  to  be  heard  upon  matters  affecting  private 
interests  ought  always  to  be  given  when  practicable,  yet  the  nature 
and  object  of  those  proceedings  are  such  that  it  is  deemed  to  be  most 
for  the  general  good  that  such  notice  should  not  be  essential  to  the 
right  of  the  board  to  act  for  the  public  safety.  Delay  for  the  purpose 
of  giving  notice,  involving  the  necessity  either  of  public  notice  or  of 
inquiry  to  ascertain  who  are  the  parties  whose  interests  will  be  affected, 
and  further  delay  for  such  hearings  as  the  parties  may  think  necessary 
for  the  protection  of  their  interests,  might  defeat  all  beneficial  results 
from  an  attempt  to  exercise  the  powers  conferred  upon  boards  of 
health.  The  necessity  of  the  case  and  the  importance  of  the  public 
interests  at  stake  justify  the  omission  of  notice  to  the  individual." 


17 


The  adjudication  of  the  board  that  a  nuisance  exists  is  conclusive, 
and  no  appeal  lies  therefrom. 

City  of  Salem  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Company,  98  Mass.  449. 

The  board  should  keep  an  accurate  record  of  their  proceedings,  and 
all  adjudications  should  appear  therein  in  clear  and  distinct  language. 

An  order  of  the  board  of  health  of  a  city,  under  Pub.  Stats.,  chap. 
80,  sect.  21  (Gen.  Stats.,  chap.  26,  sect.  8),  directing  the  owner  of  land 
to  remove  a  nuisance  in  a  specific  manner  is  void. 

Watuppa  Reservoir  Company  v.  Colin  Mackenzie,  132  Mass.  71. 

In  the  absence  of  statutory  authority  neither  the  board  of  health 
nor  the  city  council  of  a  city  has  any  power  to  erect  a  clam  on  a  per- 
son's land,  without  his  consent,  for  the  purpose  of  abating  a  nuisance 
existing  on  adjacent  land. 

A  city  is  not  responsible  for  damages  resulting  from  work  done 
under  the  supposed  authority  of  illegal  and  void  votes  of  the  city 
council ;  and  it  is  immaterial  that  the  work  was  done  in  a  negligent 
manner. 

Cavanagh  v.  City  of  Boston,  139  Mass.  426, 
An  indictment  charged  that  the  defendant,  at  certain  times  and  at  a 
place  named,  "  near  the  dwelling-houses  of  divers  good  citizens  of  the 
said  Commonwealth,  and  also  near  divers  public  streets  and  common 
highways  there  situate,"  did  keep  and  maintain  five  hundred  swine, 
"  by  reason  whereof  divers  large  quantities  of  noisome,  noxious  and 
unwholesome  smokes,  smells  and  stenches  on  the  days  and  times 
aforesaid,  then  and  there  were  emitted,  .  .  .  and  the  air  thereabouts 
.  .  .  greatly  filled  and  impregnated  with  many  noisome  .  .  .  stinks 
and  stenches,  and  has  been  corrupted  and  rendered  very  insalubrious, 
to  the  great  damage  and  common  nuisance  of  all  the  citizens,"  etc. 
Held,  sufficient. 

A  piggery,  in  which  swine  are  kept  in  such  numbers  that  their 
natural  odors  fill  the  air  thereabouts,  and  make  the  occupation  of  the 
neighboring  houses  and  passage  over  the  adjacent  highways  disagree- 
able, is  a  nuisance. 

On  the  trial  of  an  indictment  for  maintaining  a  common  nuisance, 
by  keeping  a  large  number  of  swine  in  the  neighborhood  of  certain 
dwellings  and  highways,  evidence  is  inadmissible  that  it  is  a  custom 
in  this  Commonwealth  to  tolerate  the  location  of  such  establishments 
in  populous  localities. 

Commonwealth  v.  Perry,  139  Mass.  198. 

A  notice  issued,  under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sect.  21,  by  the 
board  of  health  of  a  town  to  the  occupant  of  certain  premises,  order- 
ing him  to  remove  the  nuisance  existing  thereon,  may  be  served  by  a 
constable,  although  he  is  a  member  of  the  board  of  health,  and  signs 
the  notice. 

A  notice  issued,  under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sect.  21,  by  the 
board  of  health  of  a  town  to  the  occupant  of  certain  premises,  recit- 
ing that  a  nuisance,  "  consisting  of  a  filthy  hog-pen  and  stable,"  exists 
thereon,. and  ordering  him  "  to  abate  the  said  nuisance  on  your  estate, 
and  also  to  remove  your  hogs  outside  the  limits  of  the  village,  within 


18 


1849 


forty-eight  hours  after  the  service  hereof,"  is  valid  as  an  order  to  abate 
the  nuisance,  and  is  not  rendered  void  by  the  direction  to  remove  the 
hogs. 

It  is  not  necessary  that  a  complaint  to  recover  the  forfeiture  pro- 
vided by  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sect.  21,  for  permitting  a  nuisance 
to  remain  on  the  premises  after  the  time  prescribed  by  the  board  of 
health  of  the  town  for  its  removal,  should  be  made  by  the  town  treas- 
urer, but  it  may  be  made  by  an  agent  of  the  board  of  health,  appointed 
under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sect.  1G. 

An  omission  in  a  complaint,  under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sect.  21, 
for  permitting  a  nuisance  to  remain  on  the  premises  after  the  time 
prescribed  by  the  board  of  health  of  the  town  for  its  removal,  to 
allege  that  the  complainant  is  an  agent  of  the  board  of  health,  he 
being  in  fact  such  agent,  is  at  most  a  formal  defect,  which  can  be 
availed  of  only  by  a  motion  to  quash. 

Commonwealth  v.  William  N.  Alden,  143,  Mass.,  page  113. 

Order  for  abate-     28.    Such  order  shall  be  made  in  writing,  and  served  by  any 

merit,  how  &'  J  J 

p*sedc  so  §  22  Person  coinPetent  to  serve  a  notice  in  a  civil  suit,  personally  on 
the  owner,  occupant,  or  his  authorized  agent ;  or  a  copy  of  the 
order  may  be  left  at  the  last  and  usual  place  of  abode  of  the 
owner,  occupant,  or  agent,  if  he  is  known  and  within  the  state. 
But  if  the  premises  are  unoccupied  and  the  residence  of  the 
owner  or  agent  is  unknown  or  without  the  state,  the  notice  may 
be  served  by  posting  the  same  on  the  premises  and  advertising 
in  one  or  more  public  newspapers  in  such  manner  and  for  such 
length  of  time  as  the  board  or  health  officer  may  direct. 

The  manifest  purpose  of  this  provision  is  to  enable  the  owner  or 
occupant  to  remedy  the  evil  in  the  mode  least  detrimental  or  offensive 
to  himself,  and  thus  secure  himself  and  his  premises  from  the  intrusion 
of  the  agents  of  the  board  of  health. 

City  of  Salem  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Company,  98  Mass.  444. 
The  order  addressed  to  a  person  directing  him  to  remove  a  nuisance 
should  describe  the  nature  and  locality  of  the  nuisance. 

City  of  Salem  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Company,  98  Mass.  444. 
It  is  not  the  purpose  of  the  order  to  direct  in  what  mode  the  person 
should  proceed  to  remove  the  nuisance. 

It  should  direct  the  end  to  be  accomplished,  leaving  the  party  to 
adopt  any  effectual  mode  which  he  may  choose. 

City  of  Salem  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Company,  98  Mass.  444. 
An  order  of  a  board  of  health,  reciting  that  a  railroad  company,  by 
filling  up  parts  of  a  mill-pond  in  Salem,  without  supplying  suitable  and 
safe  culverts,  sluiceways,  trenches,  and  other  means  of  drainage,  have 
created  and  are  maintaining  a  nuisance  at  said  pond,  which  is  dan- 
gerous to  the  public  health,  and  a  cause  of  sickness  to  the  inhabitants, 
and  requiring  the  company  to  remove  said  nuisance  and  cause  of  sick- 


19 


ness  within  seven  days  after  service  of  notice  of  the  order,  sufficiently 
informs  the  company  of  the  nature  and  locality  of  the  nuisance. 
City  of  Salem  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Company,  98  Mass.  431. 

29.    If  the  owner  or  occupant  fails  to  comply  with  such  Owner  not  com- 

.  **\  plying,  board  to 

order,  the  board  may  cause  the  nuisance,  source  of  filth,  or  remove  nuisance 

.  *  ill  •  i  at  bin  expense. 

cause  of  sickness,  to  be  removed,  and  all  expenses  incurred  p.  s.,  c. so, § 23. 
thereby  shall  be  paid  by  the  owner,  occupant,  or  other  person  1797 
who  caused  or  permitted  the  same,  if  he  has  had  actual  notice 
from  the  board  of  health  of  the  existence  thereof. 

If  the  owner  or  occupant  neglects  to  remove  the  nuisance,  the  board 
are  then  at  liberty  to  enter  upon  the  private  property  where  it  exists, 
and  take  such  measures  as  they  may  see  fit  for  its  removal. 

City  of  Salem  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Company,  98  Mass.  444. 

If  the  order  served  upon  the  party  prescribes  a  certain  mode  of 
remedying-  the  existing  nuisance,  the  party  is  not  bound  to  adopt  that 
mode  of  remedying  the  evil,  if  auother  mode  could  be  made  to  answer 
the  end  sought;  nor  is  the  board  restricted  to  that  mode,  if  they  are 
obliged  to  take  action.  They  are  not  only  at  liberty,  but  it  is  their 
duty,  to  exercise  their  best  discretion  at  the  time. 

City  of  Salem  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Company,  98  Mass.  445. 

The  importance  of  the  duty  imposed  upon  boards  of  health,  the 
necessity  of  prompt  and  decisive  measures  to  protect  the  public  health, 
require  a  wide  discretion  in  the  use  of  means  by  which  to  "destroy, 
remove  or  prevent "  such  cause  of  sickness.  If  it  be  necessary  to  the 
proper  performance  of  their  duty,  they  may  undoubtedly,  in  the  exer- 
cise of  their  discretion,  resort  to  means  and  measures  which  affect 
injuriously  other  lands  than  those  upon  which  the  manifestation  of  the 
cause  of  sickuess  is  found. 

Thus,  where  a  railroad  company  built  their  railroad  originally  on 
piles  across  a  body  of  water,  not  interfering  with  the  free  circulation 
of  the  water,  but  afterwards  from  time  to  time  filled  in  with  earth  the 
structure,  so  as  to  finally  make  it  solid,  without  providing  sufficient 
culverts  or  other  means  of  drainage,  and  thereby  divided  and  confined 
the  waters,  and  rendered  them  stagnant  and  noisome,  a  source  of  filth, 
and  injurious  to  the  public  health,  it  was  held  that  the  board,  after 
notice  to  the  company  and  their  refusal  to  act,  were  justified  in  enter- 
ing upon  the  land  of  the  railroad  company,  and  in  digging  a  trench 
there,  for  the  purpose  of  removing  or  preventing  the  nuisance  existing 
upon  the  neighboring  land. 

City  of  Salem  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Company,  98  Mass.  446. 

It  is  not  to  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that  the  preliminary  order  is 
required  to  be  served  only  upon  the  owner  or  occupant  of  the  land 
upon  which  the  nuisance  is  found,  that  the  subsequent  proceedings 
for  recovery  of  the  expenses  of  removal  are  limited  to  such  owner  or 
occupant.  By  the  express  terms  of  the  statute,  they  may  be  claimed 
of  any  "  other  person  who  caused  or  permitted  "  the  nuisance. 


20 


As  to  such  other  person,  it  is  only  requisite  that  he  has  had  actual 
notice  from  the  board  of  the  existence  thereof. 

City  of  Salem  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Company,  98  Mass.  445. 
An  action  to  recover  expenses  incurred  in  the  removal  of  a  nuisance 
should  be  brought  in  the  name  of  the  city  or  town,  and  not  in  the 
names  of  the  members  of  the  board. 

City  of  Salem  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Company  ,  98  Mass.  442. 
Winthrop  v.  Farrar,  11  Allen,  398. 
In  a  suit  to  recover  expenses  incurred  in  removing  a  nuisance,  when 
prosecuted  against  a. party  on  the  ground  that  he  "  caused  the  same," 
but  who  was  not  heard,  and  had  no  opportunity  to  be  heard,  such  party 
is  not  concluded  by  the  findings  or  adjudications  of  the  board,  and 
may  contest  all  the  facts  upon  which  his  liability  is  sought  to  be 
established. 

City  of  Salem  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Company,  98  Mass.  447. 
In  a  suit  to  recover  expenses  incurred  in  removing  a  nuisance,  when 
prosecuted  against  a  party  on  the  ground  that  he  "  caused  the  same," 
the  record  of  proceedings  of  the  board  is  prima  facie  evidence  of  the 
existence  of  a  nuisance  which  warranted  the  board  in  taking  action 
and  incurring  expense  for  its  removal;  but  it  is  not  evidence  that  the 
nuisance  was  caused  by  the  defendant,  and  all  the  facts  upon  which  it 
is  sought  to  charge  the  defendant  with  liability  are  open  to  be  tried 
and  determined  by  the  proofs  in  the  case. 

City  of  Salem  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Company.  98  Mass.  451. 

Board  may  30.    The  board,  when  satisfied  upon  due  examination  that  a 

notify  occupants  L 

of  unfit  dwell-    cellar,  room,  tenement,  or  building,  in  its  town,  occupied  as  a 

ing  place  to  °  L 

quit,  etc.         dwelling-place,  has  become,  by  reason  of  the  number  of  occu- 

P.  S.,  c.  80,  §  24.  01  7  J 

pants,  want  of  cleanliness,  or  other  cause,  unfit  for  such  purpose, 
and  a  cause  of  nuisance  or  sickness  to  the  occupants  or  the 
1850  public,  may  issue  a  notice  in  writing  to  such  occupants,  or  any 

of  them,  requiring  the  premises  to  be  put  into  a  proper  condi- 
tion as  to  cleanliness,  or,  if  they  see  fit,  requiring  the  occupants 
to  quit  the  premises  within  such  time  as  the  board  may  deem 
reasonable.  If  the  persons  so  notified,  or  any  of  them,  neglect 
or  refuse  to  comply  with  the  terms  of  the  notice,  the  board  may 
cause  the  premises  to  be  properly  cleansed  at  the  expense  of 
the  owners,  or  may  remove  the  occupants  forcibly  and  close  up 
the  premises,  and  the  same  shall  not  again  be  occupied  as  a 
dwelling-place  without  the  consent  in  writing  of  the  board.  If 
the  owner  thereafter  occupies  or  knowingly  permits  the  same  to 
be  occupied  without  such  permission  in  writing,  he  shall  forfeit 
not  less  than  ten  nor  more  than  fifty  dollars, 
when  a  party  is  31.  When  a  persoD  is  convicted  on  an  indictment  for  a  com- 
nuisance,  board  mon  nuisance  injurious  to  the  public  health,  the  court  in  its 


21 


discretion  may  order  it  to  be  removed  or  destroyed  at  the  ex-  may  order  it 

destroyed. 

pense  of  the  defendant,  under  the  direction  of  the  board  of  p.s., c. so, § 25. 
health  ;   and  the  form  of  the  warrant  to  the  sheriff  or  other  1801 
officer  may  be  varied  accordingly. 

32.  The  superior  court,  or  a  justice  thereof,  in  term  time  or  injunction  may 
vacation,  may,  either  before  or  pending  a  prosecution  for  a  nuisance/ 
common  nuisance  affecting  the  public  health,  issue  an  injunction  P'S''  °*  8°' §  ~6' 
to  stay  or  prevent  the  same  until  the  matter  is  decided  by  a  132 7 
jury  or  otherwise  ;  may  enforce  such  injunction  according  to 

the  course  of  proceedings  in  chancery  ;  and  may  dissolve  the 
same  when  the  court  or  one  of  the  justices  shall  think  proper. 

33.  When  the  board  thinks  it  necessary  for  the  preservation  Board  may 
of  the  lives  or  health  of  the  inhabitants  to  enter  any  land,  build-  sory  examiua- 

n  .  £  tion  of  premises, 

1112:,  or  premises,  or  vessel  within  its  town,  for  the  purpose  of  when. 

.  .  ,.  P.S.,  c.  80,  §  27. 

examining  into  and  destroying,  removing,  or  preventing  a 
nuisance,  source  of  filth,  or  cause  of  sickness,  and  the  board  or 
any  agent  thereof  sent  for  that  purpose  is  refused  such  entry, 
any  member  of  the  board  or  such  agent  may  make  complaint  igl6 
under  oath  to  any  justice  of  any  court  of  record  or  to  two 
justices  of  the  peace  of  the  county,  stating  the  facts  of  the  case 
so  far  as  he  has  knowledge  thereof  ;  and  said  justice  or  justices 
may  thereupon  issue  a  warrant,  directed  to  the  sheriff  or  any  of 
his  deputies,  to  such  agent  of  the  board,  or  to  any  constable  of 
such  town,  commanding  him  to  take  sufficient  aid,  and  at  any 
reasonable  time  repair  to  the  place  where  such  nuisance,  source 
of  filth,  or  cause  of  sickness  complained  of  may  be,  and  to  de- 
stroy, remove,  or  prevent  the  same,  under  the  directions  of  the 
board. 

34.  Expenses  incurred  by  a  town  in  the  removal  of  nui-  Expenses  re- 

coverable of 

sances  or  for  the  preservation  of  the  public  health,  which  are  individuals, 

how  sued  for. 

recoverable  of  a  private  person  or  corporation,  may  be  sued  for  p.s.,  c.  so,  §  so. 
and  recovered  in  an  action  of  contract.  1849 

35.  Fines  and  forfeitures  incurred  under  general  laWS,  the  Fines  and  for- 
special  laws  applicable  to  a  town,  or  the  by-laws  and  regula-  to  usefof  towns! 
tions  of  a  town,  relating  to  health,  shall  inure  to  the  use  of  such  ^g^Q8°'  ^ 81 
town. 


Under  Statute  1849,  chap.  211,  sect.  7,  which  provides  that  all  fines 
and  forfeitures,  incurred  under  the  general  law  or  the  special  laws 
applicable  to  any  town  or  city,  or  the  ordinances,  by-laws,  and  regula- 
tions of*  any  town  or  city,  relating  to  health,  shall  inure  to  the  use  of 
such  town  or  city,  and  may  be  recovered  by  complaint  in  the  name  of 


22 


the  treasurer,  it  was  held  that  such  fines  and  forfeitures  were  recover- 
able only  by  complaint  in  the  name  of  the  treasurer  of  the  city  or  town' 
and  in  no  other  way. 

Commonwealth  v.  Fahey,  5  Cush.  408. 

Under  sect.  26,  chap.  28  of  the  Pub.  Stats.,  the  city  marshal  or 
other  police  officer,  or  the  city  treasurer,  may  prosecute  for  all  fines 
and  forfeitures  which  may  inure  to  the  city. 

The  ordinances  and  by-laws  of  the  city  of  Boston  relating  to  burying- 
grounds  and  the  burial  of  the  dead  were  held  to  be  regulations  relating 
to  health  within  the  meaning  of  the  above  statute. 

Commonwealth  v.  Fahey,  5  Cush.  411. 


Lands  injurious 

to  health,  etc., 

deemed  a 

nuisance. 

P.  S.,  c.  80,  §  28. 


1808 


[1887,  338,  §  1.] 


Party  aggrieved 
may  appeal  to 
superior  court, 
and  must  give 
notice  to  board 
or  health 
officers. 
1887,  338,  §  2. 


Persons  injuri- 
ously affected, 
etc.,  may  apply 
to  board  for 
abatement. 
P.S.,  c.  80,  §  29, 


WET,   ROTTEN,   AND  SPONGY  LANDS. 

36.  Lands  in  a  city  or  town  which  are  wet,  rotten,  or  spongy, 
or  covered  with  stagnant  water,  so  as  to  be  offensive  to  persons 
residing  in  the  vicinity  thereof,  or  injurious  to  health,  shall  be 
deemed  to  be  a  nuisance,  and  the  board  of  health  or  health 
officer  of  such  city  or  town  may,  upon  petition  and  hearing, 
abate  such  nuisance  in  the  manner  provided  in  the  following  sec- 
tions, but  no  such  nuisance  shall  be  abated  by  a  board  of  health 
or  health  officer  of  a  city  or  town  without  a  previous  appropria- 
tion therefor  by  such  city  or  town  if  the  expense  of  such  abate- 
ment will  exceed  the  sum  of  two  thousand  dollars. 

37.  Any  person  entitled  to  notice  of  the  time  and  place  of 
hearing  upon  a  petition  to  the  board  of  health  or  health  officer, 
under  the  provisions  of  section  twenty-eight  of  chapter  eighty 
of  the  Public  Statutes  as  prescribed  by  section  thirty  of  said 
chapter,  who  is  aggrieved  by  the  decision  of  such  board  or 
health  officer  that  the  land  described  in  such  petition  is  a 
nuisance,  may  appeal  therefrom  to  the  superior  court,  who  may 
hear  and  determine  the  matter  of  such  appeal,  and  during  such 
appeal  all  proceedings  in  regard  to  such  nuisance  by  such  board 
or  health  officer  shall  be  stayed.  The  party  so  appealing  shall 
within  twenty-four  hours  after  such  decision  give  written  notice 
to  said  board  or  health  officer  of  his  intention  so  to  appeal  and 
within  seven  days  shall  present  a  petition  to  the  superior  court 
setting  forth  the  grievances  complained  of,  and  the  action  of 
the  board  of  health  or  health  officer  thereon,  and  shall  there- 
upon enter  into  such  recognizance  before  said  court  in  such 
sum  and  with  such  surety  or  sureties  as  shall  be  ordered. 

38.  Any  person  claiming  to  be  injuriously  affected  by  such 
nuisance  may,  by  petition  describing  the  premises  upon  which 
it  is  alleged  to  exist,  and  setting  out  the  nature  of  the  nuisance 


23 


complained  of,  apply  to  the  hoard  or  health  officer  for  its  abate-  1808 
ment ;  thereupon  such  board  or  health  ollleer  shall  proceed  to 
view  the  premises,  and  examine  into  the  nature  and  cause  of 
such  nuisance. 

39.  Upon  such  examination  the  board  or  health  officer,  if  of  appomt  hearing, 
opinion  that  the  prayer  of  the  petition  or  any  part  thereof  ptcg  c  80  §30 
should  be  granted,  shall  appoint  a  time  and  place  for  a  hearing, 

and  before  the  time  so  appointed  shall  cause  reasonable  notice  -j^.g 
of  the  time  and  place  to  be  given  to  the  petitioners,  the  persons 
whose  lands  it  may  be  necessary  to  enter  upon  to  abate  the 
nuisance,  and  any  other  persons  who  may  be  affected  by  the 
proceedings,  and,  except  in  those  cities  and  towns  in  which  the 
mayor  and  aldermen  and  selectmen  constitute  the  board  of 
health,  to  the  mayor  or  the  chairman  of  the  selectmen,  that  they 
may  be  heard  upon  the  necessity  and  mode  of  abating  such 
nuisance,  and  the  questions  of  damages,  and  of  the  assessment 
and  apportionment  of  the  expenses  of  the  abatement. 

40.  Such  notice  shall  be  in  writing,  and  may  be  served,  by  Form  of  notice, 

.  ,  and  how  served. 

any  person  competent  to  serve  civil  process,  upon  the  mayor,  p.s.,  c.  so,  §31. 
or  chairman  of  the  selectmen,  the  petitioners,  the  owner  or 
occupant  of  any  land  upon  which  it  may  be  necessary  to  enter,  18G8 
or  which  may  be  benefited  by  the  abatement,  or  the  authorized 
agent  of  such  owner  or  occupant,  or  by  leaving  an  attested 
copy  of  such  notice  at  the  last  and  usual  place  of  abode  of  such 
persons  ;  but  if  the  lands  are  unoccupied,  and  the  owner  or 
agent  is  unknown,  or  out  of  the  State,  the  notice  to  such  owner 
may  be  served  by  posting  an  attested  copy  thereof  upon  the 
premises,  or  by  advertising  in  one  or  more  public  newspapers 
in  such  manner  and  for  such  length  of  time  as  the  board  or 
health  officer  may  direct. 

41.  At  the  time  and  place  appointed  for  the  hearing,  the  Board  after 
board  or  health  officer  shall  hear  the  parties,  and  after  the  hear-  abate  nuisance. 

,         .  i    j.    i  t         ,      «i  Manner  of  such 

ing  may  cause  such  nuisance  to  be  abated,  according  to  its  or  abatement. 

Damages,  and 
upon  wl 

excavations,  embankments,  and  drains  ftpon  any  lands,  and  p.8!!,8*!! 


his  discretion  ;  and  for  that  purpose  may  enter  and  make  such  upon  whom 

§32. 

under  and  across  any  streets  and  ways,  as  may  be  necessary  for 
such  abatement ;  and  shall  also  determine  in  what  manner  and 
at  whose  expense  the  improvements  made  shall  be  kept  in  repair, 
and  shall  estimate  and  award  the  amount  of  damage  sustained  by 
and  benefit  accruing  to  any  person  by  reason  of  such  improve- 
ments, and  what  proportion  of  the  expense  of  making  and  keep- 


1808 


24 


ing  the  same  in  repair  shall  be  borne  by  the  city  or  town  and  by 
any  person  benefited  thereby.  The  damages  so  awarded  shall  be 
paid  by  the  city  or  town,  and  there  shall  be  assessed  to  the  sev- 
eral persons  benefited  by  such  improvements  their  proportionate 
part,  to  be  ascertained  as  before  provided,  of  the  expense  of 
making  and  keeping  in  repair  such  improvements,  and  the  same 
shall  be  included  in  the  next  city  or  town  taxes  of  such  persons, 
and  shall  be  a  lien  upon  the  real  estate  benefited  thereby,  and 
be  collected  in  the  same  manner  as  other  taxes  upon  real  estate. 
Party  aggrieved  Any  person  aggrieved  by  the  assessment  so  made  may  at  any 

may  apply  for  a    .  ...  .   .  ,  . 

jury,  but  must  time  within  three  months  after  receiving  notice  thereof,  apply 
1887, 338,c§  3.  f or  a  jury  ;  such  application  shall  be  made  in  like  manner  and 
the  proceedings  thereon  shall  be  the  same  as  in  case  of  lands 
taken  for  laying  out  of  highways  :  provided,  that  before  making 
his  application,  the  party  shall  give  one  month's  notice  in  writ- 
ing to  the  selectmen  or  mayor  and  aldermen  of  his  intention  so 
to  apply,  and  shall  therein  particularly  specify  his  objections  to 
the  assessment,  to  which  specification  he  shall  be  confined  upon 
the  hearing  by  the  jury. 
Board  to  make      42.    The  board  or  health  officer  shall,  within  thirty  days 

return  of  doings  ^  ^ 

to  town  clerk,    after  the  abatement  of  any  nuisance  in  the  manner  hereinbefore 

P.S.,  c.  80,  §  33.  J 

provided,  make  return  to  the  city  or  town  clerk  of  its  or  his 

1 808 

doings  in  the  premises,  which  return  shall  be  by  him  recorded 
in  the  city  or  town  records, 
if  board  unrea-      43.    if  the  board  or  health  officer  unreasonably  refuses  or 

sonably  refuses  ^ 

to  act,  superior  neglects  to  proceed  in  the  matter  of  such  petition,  the  petitioner 

court  may  o  t  i  r 

appoint  com-  may  apply  by  petition  to  the  superior  court  or  any  justice 
p.  s.,  c.  8<>j§  34.  thereof,  who,  upon  a  hearing  and  good  cause  shown,  may 
1868  appoint  three  commissioners,  who  shall  proceed  in  the  manner 

hereinbefore  provided. 
Persons  ag-  44.    Any  person  aggrieved  by  the  decision  of  the  board, 

award  o^dam-  health  officer,  or  commissioners,  in  their  estimate  and  award  of 
for  jury.y  apP'*  damages,  may  make  complaint  to  the  county  commissioners  for 
p.s.,  c.  so,  §  35.  j.jie  county  at  any  time  within  one  year  after  the  return  to  the 
1868  ci£y  or  town  clerk  ;  thereupon  the  same  proceedings  shall  be 

had  as  in  cases  where  persons  or  parties  are  aggrieved  by  the 
award  of  damages  by  selectmen  for  land  taken  for  a  town  way. 

An  order  of  the  board  of  health  of  a  city,  under  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80, 
sect.  32  (Statute  of  1868,  chap.  160),  directing  the  owner  of  land  to 
remove  a  nuisance,  is  void  if  passed  without  a  previous  notice  and 
hearing. 


25 


The  owner  of  swamp-land  conveyed  to  a  reservoir  company  [author- 
ized by  its  charter  to  store  water,  and  to  drain  ofF  the  same  in  such 
manner  as  it  should  deem  best,  and  for  this  purpose  to  acquire  land  by 
purchase  or  otherwise]  the  right  of  flowing  or  raising  the  waters  of  a 
pond  over  his  land  by  a  deed  containing  full  covenants  of  seisin  and 
warranty.  Held,  that  the  deed  conveyed  an  easement  in  the  land,  and 
was  not  a  release  of  damages  for  flowing  the  land;  and  that  the 
reservoir  company  might  maintain  a  bill  in  equity  against  the  owner 
of  the  land  to  restrain  him  from  filling  the  same. 

Watuppa  Reservoir  Company  v.  Colin  McKenzie,  132  Mass.  71. 

A  petition  to  the  board  of  health  of  a  city  described  a  nuisance  as 
"owing  to  large  quantities  of  stagnant  water  standing  in  an  open  drain 
between  "  two  streets  of  the  city.  The  board  of  health  issued  a  notice 
that  it  was  acting  under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sects.  30,  31  and 
32  (Statute  of  1868,  chap.  160),  and  abated  the  nuisance.  On  a  petition 
for  a  writ  of  certiorari  to  quash  the  proceedings  of  the  board  of  health, 
it  did  not  appear  whether  the  drain  was  a  public  or  private  one,  nor 
for  what  purpose  it  was  made ;  and  it  appeared  to  be  a  watercourse. 
Held,  that  it  could  not  be  said  that  the  nuisance  was  not  such  as  could 
be  abated  under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sects.  30,  31  and  32  (Statute 
of  1868,  chap.  160),  and  that  it  was  too  late  to  take  this  objection. 
Grace  v.  Newton  Board  of  Health,  135  Mass.  490. 

On  a  petition  for  a  writ  of  certiorari  to  quash  the  proceedings  of  the 
board  of  health  of  a  city,  assessing  the  expense  of  abating  a  nuisance 
under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sect.  32  (Statute  of  1868,  chap.  160),  the 
record  showed  a  petition  addressed  to  the  board  of  health,  which  com- 
plained of  large  quantities  of  stagnant  water  standing  in  an  open  drain 
between  two  streets,  from  which  arose  such  unhealthy  odors  as  to 
cause  great  sickness  in  the  neighborhood,  and  prayed  for  a  hearing ; 
a  reference  of  the  same  to  the  next  city  government;  a  vote  of  the 
board  of  health,  the  next  year,  to  view  the  premises ;  a  view  taken;  an 
order  that  the  city  engineer,  under  direction  of  a  committee,  be  directed 
to  widen,  straighten  and  deepen  a  watercourse  between  the  two  streets, 
and  that  the  clerk  be  instructed  to  notify  abutters  on  the  watercourse 
of  a  hearing  on  a  certain  day,  under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sect.  30 
(Statutes  of  1868,  chap.  160)  ;  a  warrant  issued  by  the  clerk  to  a  constable 
;o  notify  abutters  of  the  intention  of  the  board  of  health  to  enter  upon 
the  premises  for  the  purpose  of  widening,  deepening  and  straightening 
the  brook,  and  that  a  hearing  would  be  given,  at  a  time  and  place 
named,  to  all  parties  interested  in  the  matter,  as  to  the  necessity  and 
mode  of  abating  the  nuisance  caused  by  the  brook,  and  the  question 
of  damages,  and  of  the  assessment  and  apportionment  of  the  expenses 
thereof;  and  a  notice  setting  forth  these  things,  and  stating  that  it 
was  in  accordance  with  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sect.  32  (Statute  of 
1868,  chap.  160).  Held,  that  it  sufficiently  appeared  that  the  board  was 
attempting  to  act  under  this  statute.  Held,  also,  that  the  petition  was 
sufficient  to  give  the  board  jurisdiction. 

Grace  v.  Newton  Board  of  Health,  135  Mass.  490. 


26 


An  assessment  cannot  be  levied,  for  expenses  incurred  by  a  board 
of  health  under  the  Pub.  Stat.,  chap.  80,  sect.  32  (Statute  of  1868,  chap. 
100),  upon  a  person  to  whom  notice  of  the  hearing  provided  lor  in 
.sect.  30  (3)  is  not  given,  although  he  has  knowledge  of  the  doing  of 
the  work  whereby  the  expenses  are  incurred. 

Under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sect.  32  (Statute  of  1868,  chap.  160), 
a  board  of  health  may  act  by  a  committee  in  abating  a  nuisance.  If 
a  board  of  health  has  given  notice  of  a  hearing  under  the  Pub.  Stats., 
chap.  80,  sect.  30  (Statute  of  1868,  chap.  160,  sect.  3),  it  need  not 
give  a  new  notice  of  its  intention  to  make  an  assessment,  under  sect. 
32  (5). 

A  report  of  a  committee  of  the  board  of  health  of  a  city,  upon  the 
assessment  of  damages  and  benefits  sustained  by  the  abatement  of  a 
nuisance,  under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sect.  32  (Statute  of  1868, 
chap.  160,  sect.  3),  was  accompanied  by  orders  drawn  in  accordance 
with  the  report,  and  by  warrants  upon  the  city  treasurer  for  the  col- 
lection of  assessments.  The  record  showed  that  the  report  was 
accepted  and  the  orders  and  warrants  adopted.  Held,  that  the  adop- 
tion of  the  report  sufficiently  appeared. 

Grace  v.  Newton  Board  of  Health,  135  Mass.  490. 


Persons  ag- 
grieved by  re- 
fusal of  board 
to  abate  a 
nuisance  may 
appeal  to  county 
commissione  rs. 
P.S.,  c.  80,  §  3G. 


180(5 


Tarty  appealing 
to  give  notice, 
etc.  Other 
proceedings. 
P.  S  ,  c.  80,  §  37 


18(50 


Cost  and 
expenses,  how 
paid. 

P.S.,  c.  80,  §  38. 


18(50 


APPEAL  TO  COUNTY  COMMISSIONERS. 

45.  Any  person  aggrieved  by  the  neglect  or  refusal  of  the 
board  of  health  in  a  city  or  town  to  pass  all  proper  orders 
abating  a  nuisance  or  nuisances  may  appeal  to  the  county  com- 
missioners, who  may  hear  and  determine  the  matter  of  such 
appeal,  and  exercise  in  such  case  all  the  powers  which  the 
board  might  exercise. 

46.  The  party  so  appealing  shall,  within  twenty-four  hours 
after  such  neglect  or  refusal,  give  written  notice  to  the  opposite 
party  of  his  intention  so  to  appeal,  and  within  seven  days  shall 
present  a  petition  to  some  one  of  the  commissioners,  setting 
forth  the  grievances  complained  of,  and  the  action  of  the  board 
of  health  thereon,  and  shall  thereupon  enter  into  such  recog- 
nizance before  the  commissioners,  in  such  sum,  and  with  such 
surety  or  sureties,  as  they  shall  order. 

47.  Each  commissioner,  when  acting  under  the  provisions  of 
this  chapter,  shall  tax  three  dollars  per  day  for  time,  and  five 
cents  a  mile  for  travel  to  and  from  the  place  of  meeting,  to  be 
paid  into  the  county  treasury  ;  and  such  costs  shall  in  the  first 
instance  be  paid  by  the  appellant,  and  the  commissioners  may 
award  that  such  costs  and  any  other  costs  of  the  proceedings 
shall  be  paid  by  either  party,  as  in  their  judgment  justice  shall 
require. 


27 


DISEASES  DANGEROUS  TO  PUBLIC  HEALTH  ;   HOSPITALS  INFECTED 
PERSONS  AND  THINGS  ;  CONTAGIOUS  DISEASES  IN  PUBLIC  SCHOOLS. 

48.  When  a  householder  knows  that  a  person  within  his  Householders 
family  is  sick  of  small-pox,  diphtheria,  scarlet  fever  or  any  of  Smgerous 
other  disease  dangerous  to  the  public  health,  he  shall  immedi- 
ately give  notice  thereof  to  the  selectmen  or  board  of  health  of  1792 
the  town  in  which  he  dwells,  and  upon  the  death,  recovery  or 
removal  of  such  person,  the  rooms  occupied  and  the  articles 

used  by  him  shall  be  disinfected  by  such  householder  in  a  man- 
ner approved  by  the  board  of  health.    Any  person  neglecting  Penalty, 
or  refusing  to  comply  with  either  of  the  above  provisions  shall  Fs'sl  os",  §  i.§  '§' 
forfeit  a  sum  not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars.* 

49.  When  a  physician  knows  that  a  person  whom  he  is  physicians  to 
called  to  visit  is  infected  with  small-pox,  diphtheria,  scarlet  glve  n°  lce' 
fever  or  any  other  disease  dangerous  to  public  health,  he  shall  X827 
immediately  give  notice  thereof  to  the  selectmen  or  board  of 

health  of  the  town ;  and  if  he  refuses  or  neglects  to  give  such  Penalty, 
notice  he  shall  forfeit  for  each  offence  not  less  than  fifty  nor  i884j W,  §  2. 
more  than  two  hundred  dollars. 

50.  The  boards  of  health  in  the  several  cities  and  towns  Records  to  be 
shall  cause  a  record  to'  be  kept  of  all  reports  received  in  pur-  kept* 
suance  of  the  preceding  sections  and  such  record  shall  contain  - 

the  names  of  all  persons  who  are  sick,  the  localities  in  which 

they  live,  the  diseases  with  which  they  are  affected,  together 

with  the  date  and  the  names  of  the  persons  reporting  any  such 

cases.    The  boards  of  health  shall  give  the  school  committee  School  commit- 

immediate  information  of  all  cases  of  contagious  diseases  re-  fied. 

ported  to  them  according  to  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

51.  The  secretary  of  the  commonwealth  shall  furnish  the  Secretary  to 
boards  of  health  with  blank  books  for  the  record  of  cases  of  record -books. 

'.  ,.  ,  .  ,    ,  1884,98,  §4. 

contagious  diseases  as  above  provided. 

52.  When  the  board  of  health  of  any  city  or  town  has  had  Local  boards 

J        J  .  notify  State 

notice  of  the  occurrence  of  a  case  of  small-pox  in  such  city  or  board  of  cases 

,  of  small-pox. 

town,  such  board  of  health  shall,  within  twenty-four  hours  after  1883, 13s,  §  1. 
the  receipt  of  such  notice,  notify  the  state  board  of  health  of 
the  same,  and  the  secretary  of  said  state  board  shall  forthwith 
transmit  a  copy  of  the  notice  so  received  to  the  state  board  of 
lunacy  and  charity. 

53.  If  the  board  of  health  of  the  city  or  town,  in  which  a  Forfeiture  of 
case  of  small-pox  has  occurred,  refuses  or  neglects  to  send  a  expenses,  if 


*  See  chap.  102,  Acts  of  1890,  at  end  of  this  manual. 


28 


local  board 
neglects  to 
notify. 
1883,  138,  §  2. 


School  commit- 
tees not  to  allow 
children  sick 
with  contagious 
diseases  to 
attend  school. 
Certificate  of 
recovery 
required. 
1S85,  198,  §  1. 


Board  may  per- 
mit removal  of 
iufected  articles, 
etc. 

P.  S.,  c.  80,  §  39. 

1816 

Board  to  make 
provision  for 
persons  in- 
fected. 

P.  S.,  c.  80,  §  40. 


1797 


notice  as  required  in  section  one,  such  city  or  town  shall  forfeit 
its  claim  upon  the  commonwealth,  for  the  payment  of  any  ex- 
penses which  may  be  incurred,  as  provided  in  section  eighty- 
three  of  chapter  eighty  of  the  Public  Statutes. 

54.  The  school  committees  shall  not  allow  any  pupil  to  attend 
the  public  schools  while  any  member  of  the  household  to  which 
such  pupil  belongs  is  sick  of  small-pox,  diphtheria,  or  scarlet 
fever,  or  during  a  period  of  two  weeks  after  the  death,  recovery 
or  removal  of  such  sick  person  ;  and  any  pupil  coming  from  such 
household  shall  be  required  to  present,  to  the  teacher  of  the  school 
the  pupil  desires  to  attend,  a  certificate,  from  the  attending 
physician  or  board  of  health,  of  the  facts  necessary  to  entitle 
him  to  admission  in  accordance  with  the  above  regulation. 

55.  The  board  of  health  of  a  town  may  grant  permits  for  the 
removal  of  any  nuisance,  infected  articles,  or  sick  person,  within 
the  limits  of  its  town,  when  it  thinks  it  safe  and  proper  so  to  do. 

5G.  When  a  person  coming  from  abroad  or  residing  in  a 
town  in  this  state  is  infected,  or  lately  has  been  infected,  with 
the  plague  or  other  sickness  dangerous  to  the  public  health, 
except  as  is  otherwise  provided  in  this  chapter,  the  board  shall 
make  effectual  provision  in  the  manner  which  it  judges  best  for 
the  safety  of  the  inhabitants  by  removing  such  person  to  a 
separate  house  or  otherwise,  and  by  providing  nurses  and  other 
assistance  and  necessaries,  which  shall  be  at  the  charge  of  the 
person  himself,  his  parents,  or  master,  if  able,  otherwise  at  the 
charge  of  the  town  to  which  he  belongs  ;  or  if  he  is  not  an  in- 
habitant of  any  town,  at  the  charge  of  the  commonwealth. 

Notice  should  be  given  to  the  town  to  which  the  infected  person 
belongs,  before  commencing  an  action  to  recover  the  expenses  incurred 
by  furnishing  him  with  assistance  and  necessaries. 

Inhabitants  of  Springfield  v.  Inhabitants  of  Worcester,  2  Cush.  52. 

The  following  notice,  sent  by  the  selectmen  of  Springfield  to  the 
selectmen  of  Worcester,  was  held  to  be  sufficient. 

Springfield,  May  25,  1846. 
Gentlemen  :  —  James  E.  Belden,  a  colored  man,  came  here,  not  far  from  the  first  of 
this  mouth,  diseased  with  the  small-pox.  The  expenses  of  his  sickness  have  been  borne 
by  this  town,  the  man  himself  having  no  means  of  paying  them.  According  to  the 
information  we  have,  the  town  of  Worcester  is  liable  for  these  expenses.  We  have 
therefore  thought  it  our  duty  (although  not  legally  obliged  so  to  do)  to  notify  you  of 
the  case,  that  you  may  take  such  measures  in  regard  to  it  as  you  may  deem  proper.  We 
are  told  Heury  W.  Miller  of  your  place  is  well  acquainted  with  Belden. 

The  physicians  who  have  had  charge  of  the  case  state  that  their  patient  will  probably 
recover.   His  disease  has  been  the  worst  form  of  small-pox. 

In  behalf  of  the  selectmen  of  Springfield, 

HENRY  MORRIS,  Chairman. 

To  the  Selectmen  op  Worcester. 

Inhabitants  of  Springfield  v.  Inhabitants  of  Worcester,  2  Cush.  52. 


29 


Under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sects.  40,  41,  75,  the  board  of  health 
of  a  town  has  no  authority  to  take  possession  of  a  dwelling-house  and 
the  furniture  therein,  without  the  consent  of  the  owner  and  occupant 
and  to  his  exclusion,  and  use  the  house  as  a  hospital  for  a  person  found 
therein  who  is  infected  with  a  contagious  disease,  and  is  too  sick  to  be 
removed  without  clanger  to  his  health ;  and  the  owner  cannot  maintain 
an  action  of  contract  against  the  town  for  the  use  and  occupation  of 
the  house  during  the  time  it  was  so  held  by  the  board  of  health. 
Spring  v.  Hyde  Park,  137  Mass.  554. 

A  member  of  the  board  of  health  of  a  town  has  no  authority,  against 
the  consent  of  the  owner  or  occupant,  to  take  possession  of  a  dwelling- 
house  in  which  a  contagious  disease  exists,  and  of  the  furniture  therein, 
to  the  exclusion  of  such  owner  or  occupant,  and  to  carry  away  and 
destroy  portions  of  the  furniture,  or  to  station  a  person  on  the  premises 
with  instructions  to  prevent  ingress  to  and  egress  from  the  same, 
except  in  the  manner  pointed  out  in  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80. 

In  an  action  against  a  member  of  the  board  of  health  of  a  town,  who 
unlawfully  took  possession  of  the  furniture  in  a  house  in  which  a  con- 
tagious disease  existed,  and  destroyed  it,  the  defendant  asked  the 
judge  to  rule  that  the  measure  of  damages  was  the  market  value  of  the 
property  in  its  infected  condition.  The  judge  refused  so  to  rule,  and 
instructed  the  jury  that  the  plaintiff  was  entitled  to  recover  what  the 
property  was  worth  at  the  time  it  was  taken,  taking  into  consideration 
how  much  the  value  had  been  affected  by  its  exposure  to  infection. 
Held,  that  the  defendant  had  no  ground  of  exception. 

Brown  v.  Murdock,  140  Mass.  314. 


57.  If  the  infected  person  cannot  be  removed  without  clanger  if  infected  per- 
to  his  health,  the  board  shall  make  provision  for  him,  as  directed  remoJed\°other8 
in  the  preceding  section,  in  the  house  in  which  he  may  be  ;  and  pas.^t.  so,  §  4i. 
may  cause  the  persons  in  the  neighborhood  to  be  removed,  and  1797 
take  such  other  measures  as  it  judges  necessary  for  the  safety  -^ggg 

of  the  inhabitants. 

58.  The  board  of  health  of  a  town  near  to  or  bordering  upon  Persons  may  be 
either  of  the  neighboring  states  may  appoint,  by  writing,  suit-  p^esbordering 
able  persons  to  attend  at  places  by  which  travellers  may  pass  to  eSmin^etc. 
from  infected  places  in  other  states  ;  who  may  examine  such  P" s"' c" 80' §  42' 
travellers  as  it  suspects  of  bringing  any  infection  dangerous  to 

the  public  health,  and  if  need  be  may  restrain  them  from  travel-  17i)7 
ling  until  licensed  thereto  by  the  board  of  health  of  the  town  to 
which  they  may  come.  A  traveller  coming  from  such  infected 
place,  who  without  such  license  travels  within  this  state  (except 
to  return  by  the  most  direct  way  to  the  state  whence  he  came), 
after  he  has  been  cautioned  to  depart  by  the  persons  so  ap- 
pointed, shall  forfeit  a  sum  not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars. 


30 


mayissueCwar-  ^ '  ^w0  jus^ces  or"  tue  peace  may,  if  need  be,  make  out  a 
S  persons ve  warrant  directed  to  the  sheriff  of  the  county  or  his  deputy,  or  to 
pcs  c  so  §43  any  consta^e5  requiring  them  under  the  direction  of  the  board 
to  remove  any  person  infected  with  contagious  sickness,  or  to 
1797  impress  and  take  up  convenient  houses,  lodging,  nurses,  attend- 

ants and  other  necessaries,  for  the  accommodation,  safety  and 
relief  of  the  sick. 

fssue warrants  When,  upon  the  application  of  the  board,  it  appears  to 

arSsinetcCted  a  jus^ce  0I*  tne  Peace  that  there  is  just  cause  to  suspect  that 
Sheriff  may      baggage,  clothing  or  goods  found  within  the  town  are  infected 

impress  aid.  00  07  °  ° 

p.  8.,  c.  so,  §  44.  with  the  plague  or  other  disease  dangerous  to  the  public  health, 
he  shall,  by  warrant  directed  to  the  sheriff  or  his  deputy,  or  to 

1797  any  constable,  require  him  to  impress  so  many  men  as  said 

justice  may  judge  necessary  to  secure  such  baggage,  clothing 
or  goods,  and  to  post  said  men  as  a  guard  over  the  house  or 
place  where  such  articles  are  lodged  ;  who  shall  take  effectual 
care  to  prevent  persons  from  removing  or  coming  near  the  same 
until  due  inquiry  is  made  into  the  circumstances. 

H^houTeTand     ^  *    The  justice  may  by  the  same  warrant,  if  it  appears  to 

stores  for  safe    him  necessary,  require  the  officers,  under  the  direction  of  the 

keeping  of  *  1       *  7 

goods,  etc.       board,  to  impress  and  take  up  convenient  houses  or  stores  for 

V.  S.,  c.  80,  §  45.  7  1  1 

the  safe  keeping  of  such  articles  ;  and  the  board  may  cause 
1797  them  to  be  removed  thereto,  or  otherwise  detained,  until,  in  the 

opinion  of  the  board,  they  are  freed  from  infection. 
May  break  open     (j2.    The  officers,  in  the  execution  of  the  warrant,  shall,  if 

houses,  shops,  7  '  ' 

mandaidCOm     nee(^  ^e,  break  open  any  house,  shop  or  other  place,  mentioned 
p.s.,c.  so,  §  46.  in  the  warrant,  where  such  articles  are  ;  and  may  require  such 
aid  as  is  necessary  to  effect  the  execution  of  the  warrant. 

1  797 

Whoever  neglects  or  refuses  to  assist  in  the  execution  of  the 
warrant,  after  being  commanded  to  assist  by  either  of  said 
officers,  shall  forfeit  a  sum  not  exceeding  ten  dollars. 
Sdebyeowners  ^ue  cnarges  of  securing  such  articles,  and  transporting 

p  s°°c88o  §47  anc^  Pul'ifymg  the  same,  shall  be  paid  by  the  owners,  at  such 
1797  rates  and  prices  as  may  be  determined  by  the  board. 

Town  to  make       64.    When  a  sheriff  or  other  officer  impresses  or  takes  up  any 

compensation  1  *•  •* 

for  houses,  etc.,  houses,  stores,  lodging  or  other  necessaries,  or  impresses  men  as 

or  services  °  ° 

i^m greased.  ^  provided  in  this  chapter,  the  several  parties  interested  shall  be 
entitled  to  a  just  compensation  therefor,  to  be  paid  by  the  town 
in  which  such  persons  or  property  are  so  impressed. 

Removal  of  65.    When  a  person  .confined  in  a  common  jail,  house  of 

prisoners  .  .    .  £ 

attacked  with     correction  or  workhouse,  has  a  disease  which,  in  the  opinion  or 

disease. 


31 


the  physician  of  the  board  or  of  such  other  physician  as  it  may  p.  b.,  c.  so,  §  49. 

consult,  is  dangerous  to  the  safety  and  health  of  other  prisoners 

or  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  town,  the  board  shall  by  its  order  181 

in  writing  direct  the  removal  of  such  person  to  some  hospital  or 

other  place  of  safety,  there  to  be  provided  for  and  securely  kept 

so  as  to  prevent  his  escape  until  its  further  order.    If  such 

person  recovers  from  the  disease,  he  shall  be  returned  to  said 

prison  or  other  place  of  confinement. 

6G.    If  the  person  so  removed  is  committed  by  order  of  court  Return  of  re- 

moval  to  be 

or  under  judicial  process,  the  order  for  his  removal,  or  a  copy  made  to  court. 

-iini      Such  removal 

thereof  attested  by  the  presiding  member  ot  the  board,  shall  be  not  an  escape, 
returned  by  him,  with  the  doings  thereon,  into  the  office  of  the  r- s  > c- 80' § 
clerk  of  the  court  from  which  the  process  of  commitment  was  1816 
issued.     No  prisoner  so  removed  shall  thereby  commit  an 
escape. 

67.  Any  town  may  establish  within  its  limits,  and  be  con-  Hospitals  may 

i  .11.1  i         -i   i     p       ,,  be  provided  by 

stantly  provided  with,  one  or  more  hospitals  for  the  reception  towns. 

of  persons  having  a  disease  dangerous  to  the  public  health.        I70i8°' §  7° 

68.  Such  hospitals  shall  be  subject  to  the  orders  and  regula-  To  be  under 
tions  of  the  board,  or  of  a  committee  of  the  town  appointed  for  °f  heeait°h.boald 

,i  P.  S.,  c.  80,  §  71. 

that  purpose.  '  * 

69.  No  such  hospital  shall  be  established  within  one  hundred  ^t-?  be  near 

1  dwelling-house, 

rods  of  an  inhabited  dwelling-house  situated  in  an  adjoining  etc. 

&  J  °  P.  S.,c.  80,  §  72. 

town,  without  the  consent  of  such  town.  1776 

70.  Whoever  occupies  or  uses  a  building  for  a  hospital  in  a  Not  to  be 
part  of  a  city  or  town  prohibited  by  the  mayor  and  aldermen  or  out^thority!" 
selectmen  shall  forfeit  a  sum  not  exceeding  fifty  dollars  for  p^g"^"*  §  73. 
every  month  he  so  occupies  or  uses  such  building,  and  in  like 
proportion  for  a  portion  of  a  month  ;  and  the  supreme  judicial 

court  in  term  time  or  vacation  may  issue  an  injunction  to  pre- 
vent such  occupancy  or  use. 

71.  When  a  hospital  is  established,  the  physician,  nurses,  physicians,  etc., 
attendants,  the  persons  sick  therein,  and  all  persons  approaching  shoject tob'oard 
or  coming  within  the  limits  thereof,  and  all  furniture  and  other  p.s?,ao?8o,  §74. 
articles  used  or  brought  there,  shall  be  subject  to  such  regula-  ^j^s> 
tions  as  may  be  made  by  the  board  of  health  or  the  committee 
appointed  for  that  purpose. 

72.  When  a  disease  dangerous  to  the  public  health  breaks  if  dangerous 
out  in  a  town,  the  board  shall  immediately  provide  such  hospital  outt'boarcu^8 


or  place  of  reception  for  the  sick  and  infected  as  is  judged  best  j^™ e\c!  h°spi 
for  their  accommodation  and  the  safety  of  the  inhabitants,  which  p,s"' 


§  75. 


32 


1848 


1873 


1701  shall  be  subject  to  the  regulations  of  the  board  ;  and  the  board 

may  cause  any  sick  and  infected  person  to  be  removed  thereto, 

1837  unless  his  condition  will  not  admit  of  his  removal  without  dan- 
ger to  his  health,  in  which  case  the  house  or  place  where  he 
remains  shall  be  considered  as  a  hospital,  and  all  persons 
residing  in  or  in  any  way  concerned  within  the  same  shall  be 
subject  to  the  regulations  of  the  board  as  before  provided. 

Selectmen  to        73.    When  such  disease  is  found  to  exist  in  a  town,  the 

give  notice  of  7 

infected  places,  selectmen  and  board  of  health  shall  use  all  possible  care  to  pre- 

P.  8.,  c.  SO,  §  76.  L  f 

vent  the  spreading  of  the  infection,  and  to  give  public  notice  of 
1792  infected  places  to  travellers,  by  displaying  red  flags  at  proper 

distances,  and  by  all  other  means  which  in  their  judgment  shall 

1838  De  most  effectual  for  the  common  safety.  And  whoever 
obstructs  the  selectmen,  board  of  health,  or  its  agent,  in  using 
such  means  to  prevent  the  spreading  of  the  infection,  or  wil- 
fully removes,  obliterates,  defaces,  or  handles  the  red  flags  or 
other  signals  so  displayed,  shall  forfeit  for  each  offence  not 
less  than  ten  nor  more  than  one  hundred  dollars. 

Penalty  on  per-      74.    if  a  physician  or  other  person  in  any  of  the  hospitals 

sons  in  hospitals  . 

for  violating      or  places  of  reception   before  mentioned,  or  who  attends, 

regulations.  A  * 

p.s.,  c.  so,  §  77.  approaches,  or  is  concerned  with  the  same,  violates  any  regula- 
1792  tion  lawfully  made  in  relation  thereto,  either  with  respect  to 

1838  himself  or  his  or  any  other  person's  property,  he  shall  for  each  of- 

fence forfeit  not  less  than  ten  nor  more  than  one  hundred  dollars, 
Certain  pro-         75.    The  provisions  of  sections  forty,  forty-one,  seventy-five, 

visions  not  to  r  J  1         J  J 

apply  to  small-  seventy-six,  and  seventy-seven,  of  chapter  eighty,  Public  Stat- 
p.  s.,  c.  so,  §  82.  utes,  so  far  as  they  confer  authority  for  the  removal  of  patients 
1838  from  their  homes,  except  in  cases  of  persons  residing  in  board- 

1840  m£  houses,  hotels,  or  where  two  or  more  families  occupy  the 

same  dwelling,  and  other  cases,  where  in  the  opinion  of  the 
board  and  the  attending  physician  the  case  cannot  be  properly 
isolated,  shall  not  apply  to  small-pox. 


1848 
1872 


Expenses,  how      76.    All  reasonable  expenses  which  have  been  heretofore  or 

to  be  paid. 

p.  s.,  c.  so,  §  83.  may  hereafter  be  incurred  by  the  board  of  health  of  a  city  or 
town,  in  making  the  provision  required  by  law  for  a  person 

1874  infected  by  the  small-pox  or  other  disease  dangerous  to  the 

public  health,  shall  be  paid  by  the  person  himself,  his  parents, 
or  master,  if  able  ;  otherwise  by  the  town  in  which  he  has  a 
legal  settlement ;  and  if  he  has  no  settlement,  by  the  Common- 
wealth, in  which  case  the  bills  therefor  shall  be  approved  by 
the  state  board  of  lunacy  and  charity. 


33 


77.  No  city  or  town  officer  shall  be  allowed  to  send  to  the  Small  pox  pa- 

tients  not  to  be 

almshouse*  any  person  infected  with  small-pox  or  other  disease  sent  to  state 

t  i  i  t    i       .,,  .  .  .  almshouse; 

dangerous  to  the  public  health,  or  any  other  sick  person  whose  how  provided 
health  would  be  endangered  by  removal ;  but  all  such  persons  p°!g.,  c.  86, 
liable  to  be  maintained  by  the  Commonwealth  shall  be  supported  §§  25' 26 ' 
during  their  sickness  by  the  city  or  town  in  which  they  are  taken  |^.rj 
sick,  and  notice  of  such  sickness  shall  be  given  to  the  state 
board, f  which  may  examine  the  case  and  order  the  removal  of  ^§79 
the  patient  if  it  deems  expedient :  provided,  that  the  notice 
herein  required,  in  cases  of  sick  persons  whose  health  would  be 
endangered  by  removal,  shall  be  signed  by  the  overseers  of  the 
poor,  or  by  such  officer  as  they  see  fit  by  special  vote  to 
appoint,  and  they  or  he  shall  certify,  after  a  personal  exami- 
nation that  in  their  or  his  opinion  such  removal  of  the  person  isss,  211,  §  1. 
named  in  such  notice,  at  the  time  of  his  application  for  aid, 
would  endanger  his  health. 

78.  The  expense  incurred  by  a  city  or  town  under  the  pro-  Expenses  of 

*  ,  small-pox  cases. 

visions  of  the  preceding  section,  after  notice  has  been  given  as  rsss,  211,  §  2. 
therein  required,  shall  be  reimbursed  by  the  Commonwealth, 
the  bills  for  such  support  having  been  approved  by  the  state 
board  or  by  some  person  designated  by  it,  the  bill  so  audited 
being  endorsed  with  a  distinct  declaration  that  the  amount 
charged  for  has  been  paid  from  the  city  or  town  treasury. 

79.  The  expense  of  thus  supporting  a  person  who  is  a  state  Expenses  of 
pauper,  written  notice  having  been  given  to  the  state  board  casees.pauper  * 
within  sixty  days  from  the  time  when  such  aid  shall  be  first  1885'2n,§°- 
given,  shall  be  paid  by  the  Commonwealth,  reference  being  had 

to  the  expense  of  supporting  such  a  person  at  the  almshouse,  if 
thereto  committed. 

VACCINATION .  1810  J 

80.  Parents  and  guardians  shall  cause  their  children  and  Parents,  etc.,  to 

0  cause  children 

wards  to  be  vaccinated  before  they  attain  the  age  of  two  years,  penaUyCf0rated' 
and  revaccinated  when  the  selectmen  or  mayor  and  aldermen  neglect. 

J  ,       .  P.S.,  c.  80,  §51. 

shall  after  five  years  from  the  last  vaccination  require  it.  For 
every  year's  neglect  the  party  offending  shall  forfeit  five  dollars. 

*  State  Almhouse  at  Tewksbury. 

t  The  term  State  Board  in  sects.  77,  78  and  79  of  this  manual  has  reference  to 
the  State  Board  of  Lunacy  and  Charity. 

%  Chapter  117,  section  2,  Acts  of  1809,  1810,  and  dated  March  6,  1810,  provided 
for  "  inoculation  of  the  inhabitants  with  the  cow-pox,  under  the  direction  of  the 
town  board  of  health,  or  a  committee  chosen  for  that  purpose." 


1855 


34 


Selectmen,  etc., 
to  enforce  vac- 
cination. Pen- 
alty for  neglect. 
P.  8.,  c.  80,  §  52. 


1855 


Towns  to  pro- 
vide means. 
P.  8.,  c.  80,  §  53, 

1855 

Inmates  of 
factories,  etc., 
to  be  vaccinated. 
P.  S.,c.  80,  §  54. 


1855 


Towns  may 
make  further 
provision  for 
vaccination. 
P.  S.,  c.  80,  §  55. 

1810 

School  commit- 
tee not  to  allow 
unvaccinated 
children  to 
attend  public 
schools. 
P.S.,  c.47,  §9. 

1855 

Selectmen  may 
license  lying-in 
hospitals,  on 
certificate,  etc. 
P.S.,  c.  80,  §  56. 


1876 


Licenses  to  be 
for  two  years, 
but  revocable. 
P.S.,  c.  80,  §  57. 

1876 

Hospitals  sub- 
ject to  visitation, 

P.S.,  c.  80,  §  58, 


81.  The  selectmen  and  mayor  and  aldermen  shall  require 
and  enforce  the  vaccination  of  all  the  inhabitants,  and,  when  in 
their  opinion  the  public  health  requires  it,  the  revaccination  of 
all  the  inhabitants  who  do  not  prove  to  their  satisfaction  that 
they  have  been  successfully  vaccinated  or  re  vaccinated  within 
five  years.  Every  person  over  twenty-one  years  of  age,  not 
under  guardianship,  who  neglects  to  comply  with  any  such 
requirement,  shall  forfeit  five  dollars. 

82.  Towns  shall  furnish  the  means  of  vaccination  to  such  of 
their  inhabitants  as  are  unable  to  pay  for  the  same. 

83.  Incorporated  manufacturing  companies,  superintendents 
of  almshouses,  state  reform  schools,  industrial  schools,  lunatic 
hospitals,  and  other  places  where  the  poor  and  sick  are  received, 
masters  of  houses  of  correction,  jailers,  keepers  of  prisons, 
warden  of  the  state  prison,  and  superintendents  or  officers  of  all 
other  institutions  supported  or  aided  by  the  state,  shall  at  the 
expense  of  their  respective  establishments  or  institutions  cause 
all  inmates  thereof  to  be  vaccinated  immediately  upon  their 
entrance  thereto,  unless  they  produce  sufficient  evidence  of  pre- 
vious successful  vaccination  within  five  years. 

84.  Each  town  may  make  further  provision  for  the  vaccina- 
tion of  its  inhabitants,  under  the  direction  of  the  board  of  health 
or  a  committee  chosen  for  the  purpose. 

85.  The  school  committee  shall  not  allow  a  child  who  has 
not  been  duly  vaccinated  to  be  admitted  to  or  connected  with 
the  public  schools. 

LYING-IN  HOSPITALS. 

86.  The  selectmen  of  a  town  may  license  any  person  to 
establish  or  keep  therein  a  lying-in  hospital,  hospital  ward,  or 
other  place  for  the  reception,  care,  and  treatment  of  women  in 
labor,  if  the  board  of  health  shall  first  certify  to  the  selectmen 
that  the  person  applying  for  such  license  is  in  its  judgment  a 
suitable  person,  and  that  from  its  inspection  and  examination 
of  such  hospital,  hospital  ward,  or  other  place  aforesaid,  the 
same  is  suitable,  and  properly  arranged  and  provided  for  such 
business. 

87.  Such  license  shall  continue  in  force  for  two  years,  sub- 
ject, however,  to  revocation  by  the  selectmen. 

88.  Every  such  hospital,  hospital  ward,  or  other  place  shall  be 
subject  to  visitation  and  inspection  at  any  time  by  the  board  of 
health,  the  chief  of  police,  and  the  selectmen  ;  and  if  it  receives 


35 


in  a  year  more  than  six  women  as  patients  in  labor,  it  shall  also  1876 
be  subject  to  like  visitation  and  inspection  by  the  state  board  of 
health. 

89.    Whoever  establishes  or  keeps  or  is  concerned  in  estab-  Penalties  for 

.  .    ,  ,  ,  keeping  hospital 

lishing  or  keeping  a  hospital,  hospital  ward,  or  other  place  for  without  license. 

4.U  S       A  •  *'        L+       •  A-  P.S.,c.80,§59. 

the  purpose  mentioned  in  section  fifty-six,  or  is  engaged  in  any 
such  business,  without  such  license,  shall  for  the  first  offence  be  1876 
punished  by  a  fine  not  exceeding  five  hundred  dollars,  one  half 
of  which  shall  be  paid  to  the  complainant,  and  the  other  half  to 
the  town  ;  and  for  any  subsequent  offence  by  imprisonment  in 
the  jail  or  house  of  correction  not  exceeding  two  years. 


PROTECTION  OF  INFANTS. 

90.  Whoever  engages  in  the  business  of  taking  nursing  infants  Persons  taking 

,  „  infant  to  nurse 

or  infants  under  three  years  of  age  to  board,  or  of  entertaining  or  board  to  give 
or  boarding  more  than  two  such  infants  in  the  same  house  at  the  of  health, 
same  time,  shall,  within  two  days  after  the  reception  of  every  such  board, 
infant  beyond  the  first  two,  give  written  notice  to  the  board  of  P'S"' c*  8°' §  6°* 
health  of  the  city  or  town  where  such  infant  is  so  to  be  enter-  1876 
tained  or  boarded,  specifying  the  name  and  age  of  the  child  and 
the  name  and  place  of  residence  of  the  party  so  undertaking  its 
care  ;  and  such  board  may  enter  and  inspect  said  house  and 
premises  while  said  business  is  carried  on,  and  direct  and 
enforce  such  sanitary  measures  respecting  such  children  and 
premises  as  it  may  deem  proper. 

91.  Whoever  violates  any  of  the  provisions  of  the  preceding  Penalties. 

section,  or  refuses  admission  to  such  board  for  said  purpose,  p- s- c- 80> §  61- 

1  876 

shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  of  not  less  than  fifty  nor  more  than  AO«" 
five  hundred  dollars. 


QUARANTINE. 

92.  A  town  may  establish  a  quarantine  ground  in  a  suitable  Towns  may 
place  either  within  or  without  its  own  limits  ;   but  if  such  place  quarantine 

is  without  its  limits,  the  assent  of  the  town  within  whose  limits  pr°s°c!  so,  §  62. 
it  may  be  established  shall  be  first  obtained.  1756 

93.  Two  or  more  towns  may  at  their  joint  expense  establish  Two  or  more 
a  quarantine  ground  for  their  common  use  in  a  suitable  place  estlbiishY 


either  within  or  without  their  own  limits  ;  but  if  such  place  is  quarantine 
without  their  limits,  they  shall  firs 
town  within  whose  limits  it  may  be, 


without  their  limits,  they  shall  first  obtain  the  assent  of  the  p.'s °c".  so,  §  63. 


36 


Board  of  health 
may  establish 
the  quarantine 
of  vessels. 
P.  S.,  c.  80,  §  64. 

1699 


Quarantine 
regulations  to 
extend  to  all 
persons,  etc., 
P.8.,c.  80,  §  65. 

1816 

Penalty  for 
violation  after 
public  notice. 
P.S.,  c.  80,  §  66. 

1816 

Vessels  sus- 
pected of  in- 
fection to  be 
ordered  to 
quarantine 
ground. 

P.S.,  c.  80,  §  67. 


1816 


Penalty,  if  mas- 
ter, seamen, 
etc.,  refuse  to 
answer  on  oath. 
P.  S.,  c.  80,  §  68. 


1797 


Quarantine 
expenses  to  be 
paid  by  person 
or  owner. 
P.S.,  c.  80,  §  69 

1816 


94.  The  board  of  health  in  each  seaport  town  may  from 
time  to  time  establish  the  quarantine  to  be  performed  by  vessels 
arriving  within  its  harbor,  and  may  make  such  quarantine  regu- 
lations as  it  judges  necessary  for  the  health  and  safety  of  the 
inhabitants. 

95.  Such  regulations  shall  extend  to  all  persons,  goods,  and 
effects  arriving  in  such  vessels,  and  to  all  persons  who  may 
visit  or  go  on  board  of  the  same. 

96.  Whoever  violates  any  such  regulation  after  notice  there- 
of has  been  given  in  the  manner  before  provided  in  this  chapter 
shall  forfeit  not  less  than  five  nor  more  than  five  hundred 
dollars. 

97.  The  board  in  each  seaport  town  may  at  any  time  cause  a 
vessel  arriving  in  such  port,  when  such  vessel  or  the  cargo  thereof 
is  in  its  opinion  foul  or  infected  so  as  to  endanger  the  public 
health,  to  be  removed  to  the  quarantine  ground  and  thoroughly 
purified  at  the  expense  of  the  owners,  consignees,  or  persons  in 
possession  of  the  same  ;  and  may  cause  all  persons  arriving  in 
or  going  on  board  of  such  vessel,  or  handling  the  cargo,  to  be 
removed  to  any  hospital  under  the  care  of  the  board,  there  to 
remain  under  their  orders. 

98.  A  master,  seaman,  or  passenger,  belonging  to  a  vessel 
on  board  of  which  any  infection  then  is  or  has  lately  been,  or  is 
suspected  to  have  been,  or  which  has  been  at  or  has  come  from 
a  port  where  an  infectious  distemper  prevails  that  may  endanger 
the  public  health,  who  refuses  to  make  answer  on  oath  to  such 
questions  as  may  be  asked  him  relating  to  such  infection  or  dis- 
temper by  the  board  of  health  of  the  town  to  which  such  vessel 
may  come  (which  oath  any  member  of  the  board  may  adminis- 
ter) ,  shall  forfeit  a  sum  not  exceeding  two  hundred  dollars  ;  and 
if  not  able  to  pay  said  sum,  he  shall  suffer  six  months'  impris- 
onment. 

99.  All  expenses  incurred  on  account  of  any  person,  vessel, 
or  goods,  under  quarantine  regulations,  shall  be  paid  by  such 
person  or  the  owner  of  such  vessel  or  goods  respectively. 

The  owner  of  a  vessel  under  quarantine  regulations  is  not  liable  for 
the  expenses  of  a  seaman  at  a  hospital,  to  which  he  had  been  trans- 
ferred by  order  of  the  board  of  health  of  a  town,  and  which  was  under 
their  care. 

Inhabitants  of  Provincetown  v.  Smith,  120  Mass.  96. 
In  an  action  of  replevin  of  certain  rags  imported  into  a  city  by  the 
plaintiff,  and  retained  by  the  defendant  under  a  claim  of  lien  for  the 


37 


charges  for  disinfecting  the  rags,  it  is  not  open  to  the  plaintiff  to  object 
that  the  answer,  which  is  demurred  to,  does  not  show  that  the  disinfec- 
tion was  accomplished  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  board  of  health  of  the 
city  in  accordance  with  a  regulation  of  the  board,  but  only  shows  that 
the  defendant's  process  of  disinfection  was  one  satisfactory  to  the 
board,  if  such  objection  is  not  specifically  assigned  as  a  cause  of 
demurrer. 

In  an  action  of  replevin  of  certain  rags  imported  into  a  city  by  the 
plaintiff,  and  retained  by  the  defendant  under  a  claim  of  lien  for  the 
charges  for  disinfecting  the  rags,  it  is  not  open  to  the  plaintiff  to  con- 
tend that  the  provisions  of  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sects.  64,  67, 
contemplate  a  special  exercise  of  the  judgment  of  the  board  of  health 
as  to  each  cargo  arriving,  and  not  the  passage  of  a  general  regulation, 
if  the  answer,  which  is  demurred  to,  shows  that  there  was  a  distinct 
order  for  the  disinfection  of  the  rags  in  question. 

A  regulation  of  the  board  of  health  of  a  city,  passed  under  the 
authority  conferred  by  the  Statute  of  1816,  chap.  44,  and  the  Pub. 
Stats.,  chap.  80,  and  ordering  "  that  on  and  after  this  date  all  rags 
arriving  at  this  port  from  any  foreign  port  shall,  before  being  dis- 
charged, be  disinfected  under  the  supervision  of  an  officer  of  this 
board,  and  in  a  manner  satisfactory  to  this  board,"  even  if  the  order 
was  formal  only,  and  was  passed  without  any  inquiry  into  the  character 
of  the  rags  or  their  special  history,  is  not  unreasonable. 

A  regulation  of  the  board  of  health  of  a  city,  passed  under  authority 
conferred  by  the  Statute  of  1816,  chap.  44,  and  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap. 
80,  and  ordering  "  that  on  and  after  this  date  all  rags  arriving  at  this 
port  from  a  foreign  port  shall,  before  being  discharged,  be  disinfected 
under  the  supervision  of  an  officer  of  this  board,  and  in  a  manner 
satisfactory  to  this  board,"  is  not  void  as  infringing  the  power  of  Con- 
gress "to  regulate  commerce  with  foreign  nations." 

Under  the  Statute  of  1816,  chap.  44,  and  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80, 
sects.  18,  64,  65,  67,  69,  the  board  of  health  of  a  city  may  pass  a  regu- 
lation without  a  hearing,  ordering  rags  imported  into  the  city  to  be 
disinfected,  and  the  expense  of  such  disinfection  to  be  borne  by  the 
owner  of  the  rags ;  and  it  is  not  competent  for  the  owner  of  the  rags, 
as  a  defence  to  the  claim  for  charges  for  disinfection,  to  show  that 
the  rags  did  not  require  disinfection,  and  could  not  have  transmitted 
disease,  if  they  were  of  the  class  concerning  which  the  regulation 
was  made. 

Under  a  regulation  of  the  board  of  health  of  a  city,  made  in  pur- 
suance of  the  authority  conferred  by  the  Statutes  of  1816,  chap.  44, 
and  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sects.  18,  64,  65,  67,  69,  ordering  rags 
imported  into  the  city  to  be  disinfected  at  the  expense  of  the  owner, 
the  work  of  disinfection  may  be  delegated  by  the  board  to  a  third 
person,  who  is  entitled  to  claim  a  lien  upon  the  rags  for  his  charges. 

Samuel  P.  Train  and  another  v.  Boston  Disinfecting  Company,  144 
Mass.,  p.  523. 


38 


DOGS  ;    HYDROPHOBIA . 

p.s.,o.io2,§83.  100.  Every  license  issued  to  the  owner  of  a  dog  shall  have 
1877  printed  thereon  a  description  of  the  disease  in  dogs  known  as 

hydrophobia,  said  description  to  be  supplied  by  the  secretary  of 
the  state  board  of  health  to  the  clerks  of  the  several  cities  and 
towns  upon  application  therefor. 


Board  to  assign 
places  for  exer- 
cising offensive 
trades;  and 
may  prohibit 
them. 

P.S.,  c.  80,  §  84. 


1G92 


1785 
1855 


OFFENSIVE  TRADES. 

101.  The  board  of  health  of  a  town  shall  from  time  to  time 
assign  certain  places  for  the  exercise  of  any  trade  or  employ- 
ment which  is  a  nuisance  or  hurtful  to  the  inhabitants,  or  dan- 
gerous to  the  public  health,  or  the  exercise  of  which  is  attended 
by  noisome  and  injurious  odors,'  or  is  otherwise  injurious  to 
their  estates,  and  may  prohibit  the  exercise  of  such  trade  or 
employment  in  places  not  so  assigned  ;  the  board  may  also  pro- 
hibit such  exercise  within  the  limits  of  the  town  or  in  any 
particular  locality  thereof.  All  such  assignments  shall  be 
entered  in  the  records  of  the  town,  and  may  be  revoked  when 
the  board  shall  think  proper. 


So  far  as  this  section  extends,  the  rules  and  course  of  proceeding 
under  the  common  law  are  superseded,  but  in  all  other  respects  it  con- 
tinues in  force  as  before.  If  the  board  of  health  acts  and  assigns  places 
in  which  any  particular  trade  or  employment  may  be  carried  on,  such 
an  assignment  would  undoubtedly  legalize  the  occupation  of  any  per- 
son conducting  his  business  in  that  place,  and  he  would  then  be  liable 
to  no  process,  suit  or  prosecution,  other  than  those  which  are  specially 
appointed  and  prescribed.  But  if  no  such  assignment  has  been  made, 
and  the  board,  in  the  exercise  of  their  discretion,  have  not  seen  fit  to 
act  at  all,  a  remedy  for  injuries  to  the  public  or  for  violation  of  private 
rights  by  the  permanent  maintenance  of  offensive  trades  and  employ- 
ments must  be  found  in  the  rules  and  principles  of  the  common  law. 
The  statute,  by  leaving  that  body  to  act  according  to  the  discretion  of 
its  members,  has  imposed  no  duty  upon  them  which  they  are  impera- 
tively bound  to  perform,  and  no  means  have  been  provided  by  a  recourse 
to  which,  as  by  a  complaint  made  to  them,  they  can  be  compelled  to 
exercise  the  power  with  which  they  are  intrusted. 

Commonwealth  v.  Rumford  Chemical  Works,  16  Gray,  231. 

The  board  may  pass  an  order  prohibiting  the  exercise  of  an  offensive 
trade,  without  having  given  previous  notice  to  parties  interested. 
Belcher  v.  Farrar,  8  Allen,  327. 

In  the  above  case,  Bigelow,  C.  J.,  says  :  "If,  as  preliminary  to  the 
exercise  of  any  jurisdiction  over  the  subject-matter,  the  selectmen 
were  required  to  give  notice  to  all  persons  exercising  offensive  trades 


39 


or  employments  within  the  limits  of  the  town,  of  their  intention  to 
prohibit  the  continuance  of  them,  it  would  follow  necessarily  that  such 
persons  would  have  a  right  to  appear  and  object,  and  ask  for  a  hearing 
and  trial  on  the  question  whether  the  use  of  their  property  was  hate- 
ful or  noxious,  so  as  to  fall  within  any  of  the  classes  contemplated 
by  the  statute.  This  would  often  lead  to  protracted  examinations, 
which  might  occupy  days  or  weeks.  If,  in  the  mean  time,  the  alleged 
offensive  and  noisome  trades  might  be  carried  on  great  injury  to 
health  might  be  occasioned;  and  it  would  be  impossible  to  prevent 
the  evils  which  it  was  the  manifest  object  of  the  statute  promptly  to 
suppress." 

It  is  questionable  .whether  the  prohibition  of  offensive  trades  is  a 
proper  subject  of  a  by-law  or  ordinance,  because  that  matter  is  specially 
provided  for  by  statute  ;  and  to  prohibit  their  exercise  in  any  particular 
locality  in  a  town  or  city  by  by-law  or  ordinance  would  interfere  with 
the  right  of  appeal  to  a  jury  which  the  statute  secures. 

Commonwealth  v.  Patch,  97  Mass.  223. 

The  keeping  of  swine  cannot  be  considered  a  trade  within  the 
meaning  of  the  law,  and  would  be  a  proper  subject  of  a  by-law  or 
ordinance. 

Commonwealth  v.  Patch,  97  Mass.  223;  but  see  135  Mass.  526. 

An  order  of  the  board  under  this  section  is  not  in  the  nature  of  an 
adjudication  of  a  particular  case,  but  of  a  general  regulation  of  the 
trade  or  employment  mentioned  therein.  It  is  not  to  be  construed 
with  technical  strictness,  but  with  the  same  liberality  as  all  votes  and 
proceedings  of  municipal  bodies  or  officers  who  are  not  presumed  to  be 
versed  in  the  forms  of  law;  and  every  reasonable  presumption  is  to 
be  made  in  its  favor.  It  need  not  state  in  direct  terms  that  the  trade 
which  it  prohibits  is  a  nuisance.  It  is  sufficient  if  the  order  clearly 
shows,  that,  in  the  opinion  of  the  board,  the  exercise  of  such  trade 
will  be  hurtful  to  the  inhabitants,  or  injurious  to  the  public  health,  or 
be  attended  by  noisome  and  injurious  odors. 

Taunton  v.  Taylor,  116  Mass.  261. 

A  board  of  health  of  a  town  in  1881  made  a  regulation  which  provided 
that  no  swine  should  be  kept  in  any  place  in  a  town,  without  a 
permit  being  first  obtained  from  the  board.  On  a  complaint  against 
a  person  for  violation  of  this  regulation,  it  appeared  that  the  defendant 
kept  about  a  hundred  and  fifty  swine,  and  had  been  engaged  for  years 
in  the  business  of  feeding  offal  to  swine.  Held,  that  such  a  keeping  of 
swine  was  an  "  employment,"  and  that  the  authority  of  the  board  to 
regulate  the  same  was  under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  80,  sect.  84  (Gen. 
Stats.,  chap.  26,  sect.  52),  and  not  under  sect.  18  (5);  that  the 
defendant  wras  entitled  to  notice  under  sect  87  (55)  ;  and  that  a  pub- 
lication under  sect.  19  (6)  was  not  sufficient. 

Commonwealth  v.  Young,  135  Mass.  526. 

The  following  order  of  a  board  of  health  was  held  to  be  a  valid 
exercise  of  the  power  conferred  upon  boards  of  health  :  — 

"  Ordered,  that  the  exercise  of  the  trade  or  employment  of  preparing 


40 


tripe,  manufacturing  neat's-foot  oil,  tallow  and  glue  stock,  and  the 
boiling  and  trying  of  bones,  hoofs,  heads,  refuse,  and  partially  decayed 
animal  matter,  and  as  a  part  of  such  trade  or  employment,  the  storing 
about  the  premises  where  such  business  is  carried  on,  of  putrid  meats, 
bones,  heads,  legs,  and  the  various  other  materials  from  which  offen- 
sive smells  emanate,  which  are  used  in  such  trade  or  employment,  be 
and  the  same  hereby  is  forbidden  within  the  limits  of  the  city  of 
Taunton." 

Taunton  v.  Taylor,  11G  Mass.  261. 

A  board  of  health  may  regulate  as  well  as  prohibit  the  exercise  of 
offensive  trades. 

Sawyer  v.  State  Board  of  Health,  125  Mass.  195. 

The  same  power  by  this  section  is  given  to  the  boards  of  health  of 
towns  and  cities  as  is  given  by  sect.  93,  chap.  80,  Pub.  Stats.,  to  the 
state  board  of  health.  The  only  difference  is  this,  that  by  sect.  93  the 
state  board  is  bound  to  give  notice  to  a  party,  and  allow  him  a  hearing 
before  it  can  pass  an  order  of  prohibition ;  but  under  this  section  the 
local  boards  may  pass  an  order  of  prohibition  without  any  previous 
notice. 

Sawyer  v.  State  Board  of  Health,  125  Mass.  191. 


Superior  court 
on  complaint 
may  revoke 
such  assign- 
ment. 

P.S.,  c.  80,  §  85. 


1710 


1785 


Action  for  dam- 
ages from 
nuisance. 
P.  S.,  c.  80,  §  86. 

1  799 

Orders  of  pro- 
hibition, etc.,  to 
be  served  on 
occupant.  If 
he  refuses  to 
obey,  board 
may  prevent. 
Penalty. 
P.  8..  c.  80,  §  87. 


1855 


102.  When  it  appears  on  a  trial  before  the  superior  court 
for  the  county,  upon  a  complaint  made  by  any  person,  that  a 
place  or  building  so  assigned  has  become  a  nuisance,  by  reason 
of  offensive  smells  or  exhalations  proceeding  from  the  same,  or 
is  otherwise  hurtful  or  dangerous  to  the  neighborhood  or  to 
travellers,  the  court  may  revoke  such  assignment  and  prohibit 
the  further  use  of  such  place  or  building  for  the  exercise  of 
cither  of  the  aforesaid  trades  or  employments,  and  may  cause 
such  nuisance  to  be  removed  or  prevented. 

103.  A  person  injured  either  in  his  comfort  or  the  enjoy- 
ment of  his  estate  by  such  nuisance  may  have  an  action  of  tort 
for  the  damage  sustained  thereby. 

104.  Orders  of  prohibition  shall  be  served  upon  the  occupant 
or  person  having  charge  of  the  premises  where  such  trade  or 
employment  is  exercised.  If  the  party  upon  whom  such  order 
is  served  for  twenty-four  hours  after  such  service  refuses  or 
neglects  to  obey  the  same,  the  board  shall  take  all  necessary 
measures  to  prevent  such  exercise  ;  and  the  person  so  refusing 
or  neglecting  shall  forfeit  not  less  than  fifty  nor  more  than  five 
hundred  dollars. 


A  notice  ordered  by  the  board  and  duly  received  is  sufficiently  served. 
It  need  not  necessarily  be  served  by  a  constable  or  other  officer. 
Winthrop  v.  Farrar,  11  Allen,  398. 


41 


The  supreme  judicial  court  lias  authority  under  its  general  jurisdic- 
tion as  a  court  of  equity  to  restain  by  injunction  the  carrying  on  of 
an  offensive  trade  which  has  been  prohibited  by  a  board  of  health. 
But  the  board  must  act  in  good  faith  towards  the  parties  interested, 
and  if  by  their  action  they  have  misled  them  and  put  them  in  a  position 
to  prevent  their  availing  themselves  of  their  right  to  appeal,  and  by 
reason  thereof  they  have  lost  their  opportunity  to  appeal,  the  court 
will  refuse  to  enforce  the  orders  of  the  board  by  a  process  in  equity. 

Winthrop  v.  Farrar,  11  Allen,  402. 
A  bill  in  equity  to  restrain  a  party  from  exercising  an  offensive  trade 
or  employment  prohibited  by  the  board  of  health  of  a  city  is  properly 
brought  in  the  name  of  the  city  and  properly  signed  by  the  mayor. 

Taunton  v.  Taylor,  116  Mass.  262. 

105.  Any  person  aggrieved  by  an  order  passed  under  section  Appeal  by  per- 
eighty-f  our  or  ninety-three  of  chapter  eighty  of  the  Public  p°  s^so!  §  83. 
.Statutes  may  appeal  therefrom,  and  if  he  shall  within  three  days  1889' 193,  §  x* 
from  the  service  thereof  upon  him  file  a  petition  in  the  clerk's  1799 
office  of  the  superior  court,  in  the  county  where  the  premises 

are  located  with  reference  to  which  such  order  is  made,  for  a  1855 
jury,  a  trial  may,  after  such  notice  as  the  court  shall  order  to 
the  board,  be  had  at  the  bar  of  the  court,  in  the  same  manner 
as  other  civil  cases  are  there  tried  by  jury.  If  a  person  by 
mistake  of  law  or  fact,  or  by  accident,  fails  to  appeal  from  any 
such  order  and  to  file  his  petition  for  a  jury  within  three  days, 
and  if  he  makes  it  appear  to  the  court  or  justice  that  such  failure 
was  caused  by  mistake  or  accident,  and  that  he  has  not  since 
the  service  of  such  order  upon  him  exercised  such  trade  or  em- 
ployment contrary  to  the  order,  he  may  at  any  time  within 
thirty  days  from  the  service  of  the  order  upon  him  appeal  there- 
from and  file  his  petition  for  a  jury  with  the  same  effect  as  if 
done  within  the  said  three  days. 

106.  During  the  pendency  of  the  appeal  such  trade  or  em-  Trade  not  to  be 

exercised 

ployment  shall  not  be  exercised  contrary  to  the  order  unless  meanwhile. 

specially  authorized  by  said  board  after  the  appeal,  and  if  so  f889,''i938°§'i.89 

specially  authorized,  all  further  proceedings  by  said  board  shall 

be  stayed  during  the  pendency  of  the  appeal ;  and  upon  any  AOOt> 

violation  of  the  order  unless  specially  authorized  as  aforesaid, 

the  appeal  shall  forthwith  be  dismissed. 

The  statute  giving  to  boards  of  health  the  power  to  forbid  the  exer- 
cise, within  the  limits  of  a  town  or  city,  or  in  any  particular  locality 
thereof,  of  any  trade  or  employment  which  is  a  nuisance  or  hurtful  to 
the  inhabitants  or  dangerous  to  the  public  health,  or  the  exercise  of 


42 


which  is  attended  by  noisome  and  injurious  odors  or  is  otherwise 
njurious  to  their  estates,  and  providing  for  an  appeal,  and  that  during 
the  pendency  of  the  appeal  such  trade  or  employment  shall  not  be 
exercised  contrary  to  the  order,  is  within  the  authority  of  the  legisla- 
ture and  constitutional. 

Taunton  v.  Taylor,  116  Mass.  260. 
In  Taunton  v.  Taylor,  116  Mass.  260,  Gray,  C.  J.,  says:  "To  allow 
the  otfeusive  trade  to  be  carried  on  until  it  had  been  decided  by  a  jury 
to  be  a  nuisance,  and  the  question  of  law  arising  upon  such  a  trial 
had  been  determined  by  the  court,  would  defeat  the  purpose  of  the 
statute.  It  is  a  case  in  which  private  rights  must  be  held  subordinate 
to  the  public  welfare,  and  falls  within  the  strictest  interpretation  of  the 
maxim,  Salus  populi  suprema  lex. 

"  The  rights  of  any  person  to  be  affected  by  the  order  of  prohibition 
are  reasonably  secured  by  requiring  the  order  to  be  served  upon  him 
or  the  person  in  charge  of  his  business,  and  by  allowing  him  an  appeal 
to  a  jury  to  be  impanelled  immediately  without  waiting  for  a  regular 
term  of  court,  and  by  whose  verdict  the  order  may  be  altered,  annulled 
or  affirmed." 

Taunton  v.  Taylor,  116  Mass.  260. 
verdict  of  jury      107.    The  verdict  of  the  iury,  which  may  either  alter  the 

may  alter,  etc.,  J 

order;  to  be      order,  or  affirm  or  annul  it  in  full,  shall  be  returned  to  the  court 

returned  for 

acceptance.       for  acceptance  as  in  case  of  highways  ;  and  said  verdict  when 

P.S.,  c.  80,  §  90.  1  J  ' 

1889, 193,  §  2.  accepted  shall  have  the  authority  and  effect  of  an  original  order 
1855  from  which  no  appeal  had  been  taken,  and  may  also  be  enforced 

by  injunction  or  other  order  of  the  court  in  equity. 

The  following  order  was  issued  by  the  state  board  of  health  :  — 

COMMONWEALTH  OF  MASSACHUSETTS. 

State  Board  of  Health,  Boston,  April  5,  1876. 
To  George  A.  Sawyer  of  the  town  of  Watertown,  in  the  county  of  Middlesex. 

You  arc  hereby  notified,  that  at  a  meeting  of  the  state  board  of  health,  held  at  Boston, 
in  the  county  of  Suffolk,  on  the  third  day  of  April,  1876,  it  was  ordered,  on  the  petition 
of  W.  H.  Ingrahara  and  four  others,  and  after  a  hearing  of  the  parties,  that  G-eorge  A- 
Sawyer  of  Watertown  be,  and  he  hereby  is,  directed  to  discontinue  the  business  of 
slaughtering  and  rendering  on  the  premises  now  occupied  by  him,  on  and  after  the 
fifteenth  day  of  May,  1876.  And  it  is  adjudged  and  determined  by  this  board,  that  the 
premises  are  noxious  and  offensive,  and  that  the  public  health  and  the  public  comfort 
and  convenience  require  that  the  said  George  A.  Sawyer  be  ordered  as  aforesaid,  to 
cease  and  desist  from  carrying  on  the  said  business  on  the  said  premises,  on  and  after 
the  fifteenth  day  of  May,  1876.  And  you  are  hereby  directed  to  comply  in  all  respects 
with  the  requirements  of  the  said  order,  under  penalty  of  what  may  follow  thereon. 

An  appeal  was  taken  to  a  jury  of  the  superior  court.  The  case  was 
then  tried  in  the  superior  court,  and  the  jury  returned  the  following 
verdict  and  special  findings  :  — 


43 


"  The  jury  alter  the  order  of  the  state  board  of  health,  dated  April  5,  1876,  as  follows  : 
That  Mr.  George  A.  Sawyer  shall  be  permitted  to  continue  the  business  of  slaughtering 
animals  on  the  premises  now  occupied  by  him  in  the  town  of  Watertown,  under  the 
restrictions  as  per  appended  sheet. 

"  1.  Mr.  George  A.  Sawyer  shall  be  required  to  concrete  the  cellar  under  his  slaughter- 
house, in  concave  form. 

"  2.  Mr.  Sawyer  shall  not  keep  swine  in  or  under  his  slaughter-house. 

"  3.  All  offal  and  offensive  matter  shall  be  removed  from  the  above  premises  before 
ten  o'clock  p.m.  of  the  day  of  killing,  in  covered,  water-tight  boxes  or  tanks. 

"4.  Said  premises  shall  be  kept  at  all  times  in  a  condition  of  neatness  and  cleanliness 
acceptable  to  the  local  board  of  health." 

Held,  that  the  several  findings  of  the  jury  were  sufficiently  clear, 
precise*  and  definite  in  matters  of  form,  and  were  proper  in  substance. 
Sawyer  v.  State  Board  of  Health,  125  Mass.  196. 
Where  an  appeal  is  taken  and  trial  had  before  a  sheriff's  jury,  if  the 
defendant  is  dissatisfied  with  the  verdict,  his  remedy  is,  by  application 
to  the  superior  court,  to  set  it  aside,  and,  if  aggrieved  by  any  ruling  of 
that  court  in  matter  of  law,  by  bringing  the  question  before  the 
supreme  court  on  exceptions  or  appeal. 

Taunton  v.  Taylor,  116  Mass.  262. 


108.  If  the  order  is  affirmed  by  the  verdict,  the  town  shall  J8°BBetBs8'e^ow 
recover  costs  against  the  appellant.    If  it  is  annulled,  and  the  JgJJ11^0^ 
appellant  has  not  been  specially  authorized  by  said  board  after 

the  appeal  to  exercise  such  trade  or  employment  during  the  1855 
pendency  of  the  appeal,  he  shall  recover  damages  and  costs 
against  the  town  ;  and  if  he  has  been  specially  authorized  as 
aforesaid  and  the  order  is  annulled,  or  if  it  is  altered,  the 
appellant  shall  not  recover  damages  against  the  town,  and  the 
court  shall  render  such  judgment  as  to  costs  as  in  its  discretion 
may  seem  just. 

109.  Whoever  occupies  or  uses  a  buildiDg  for  carrying  on  slaughter 
therein  the  business  of  slaughtering  cattle,  sheep,  or  other  to  be  used  with- 
animals,  or  for  a  melting  or  rendering  establishment,  or  for  aitykave'  Pe" 
other  noxious  or  offensive  trades  and  occupations,  or  permits  P,S''  c" 80' §  92' 
or  allows  said  trades  or  occupations  to  be  carried  on  upon 

premises  owned  or  occupied  by  him,  without  first  obtaining  the 
written  consent  and  permission  of  the  mayor  and  aldermen  of 
the  city  or  selectmen  of  the  town  in  which  the  building  or 
premises  are  situated,  shall  forfeit  a  sum  not  exceeding  two 
hundred  dollars  for  every  month  he  so  occupies  or  uses  such 
building  or  premises,  and  in  like  proportion  for  a  longer  or 
shorter  time  :  provided,  that  this  section  shall  not  apply  to  any 
building  or  premises  occupied  or  used  for  the  trades  or  occupa- 
tions before  described  on  the  eighth  day  of  May  in  the  year 


44 


eighteen  hundred  and  seventy-one  ;  but  no  person  occupying  or 
using  any  building  or  premises  on  said  date  for  the  trades  or 
occupations  aforesaid  shall  enlarge  or  extend  the  same  without 
first  obtaining  the  written  consent  and  permission  of  the  mayor 
and  aldermen  or  selectmen. 

The  above  section  is  constitutional  and  valid  as  a  police  regulation. 
Watertown  v.  Mayo,  109  Mass.  318. 

Where  a  person  before  the  passage  of  the  above  statute  used  and 
occupied  a  building  on  his  own  land  as  a  slaughter-house,  and  therein 
slaughtered  cattle,  sheep  and  other  animals,  as  a  business,  and  after 
the  passage  of  the  statute  he  continued  the  business  of  slaughtering 
in  said  building,  when  the  same  caught  fire  accidentally,  and  was  con- 
sumed, and  afterwards  he  immediately  rebuilt  said  slaughter-house  on 
the  same  site,  and  continued  his  business  of  slaughtering  cattle,  sheep 
and  other  animals  therein,  and  it  further  appeared  that  the  new  build- 
ing was  different  from  the  old  one  in  its  construction  and  arrangement, 
but  was  not  larger  or  more  extensive  in  size  or  capacity,  the  court 
held  that  the  right  to  continue,  without  license,  the  same  business  in 
the  building  was  not  forfeited,  and  that  the  building  was  within  the 
exception  stated  in  the  section. 

Watertown  v.  Sawyer,  109  Mass.  320. 

The  manifest  purpose  of  the  legislature  is  to  protect  the  business 
already  established,  in  the  place  where  it  is  carried  on,  not  the  identical 
building  which  happened  to  be  standing  for  its  use  when  the  law  was 
enacted. 

Watertown  v.  Sawyer,  109  Mass.  320. 
A  person  was  the  owner  of  land  and  buildings  used  for  a  long  period 
for  a  melting  and  rendering  establishment  and  for  the  manufacture  of 
soap  in  Somerville,  a  city  containing  more  than  four  thousand  inhabi- 
tants. In  this  rendering  business  he  made  use  of  two  open  kettles; 
but  the  building  in  which  they  were  placed  did  not  cover  the  entire 
lot  of  land.  In  the  year  1872  he  tore  down  a  part  of  his  buildings, 
which  were  old  and  dilapidated,  and,  without  consent  or  permission 
from  the  mayor  and  aldermen  of  Somerville,  erected  a  new  building, 
standing  partly  on  land  covered  by  the  old  buildings  and  partly  on 
laud  that  had  not  been  so  covered.  The  new  building  covered  about 
one-third  as  much  space  as  the  oid  buildings,  and  was  two  stories  high 
with  a  French  roof,  while  the  old  buildings  were,  for  the  most  part, 
only  one  story  in  height.  The  owner's  purpose  was  to  place  in  that 
part  of  the  new  building  formerly  covered  by  the  old  one  a  covered 
kettle  or  tank  for  melting  and  rendering  purposes,  and  to  use  the 
residue  of  the  building  for  storage  and  other  purposes  connected  with 
his  business,  and  to  tear  down  and  discontinue  the  use  of  the  old 
buildings  and  of  the  two  open  kettles.  The  capacity  of  the  proposed 
new  tank  for  rendering  purposes  would  not  exceed,  and  might  not 
equal,  that  of  the  two  open  kettles.  The  old  buildings  were  standing 
and  in  use,  except  so  far  as  displaced  by  the  new  building. 


45 


Upon  these  facts  the  court  held  that  it  did  not  appear  that  the 
defendant  had  enlarged  the  premises  occupied  by  him  for  the  business 
in  question,  or  that  he  had  increased  or  purposed  to  increase  the  busi- 
ness, and  refused  to  issue  an  injunction  restraining  him  from  so 
enlarging  and  extending  them. 

Somerville  v.  O'Neil,  114  Mass.  353. 

110.  When  any  building  or  premises  are  so  occupied  or  state  board  may 

-     ,    „  ...  i  prohibit  offen- 

USed,  the  state  board  of  health  shall,  upon  application  made  to  sive  trades. 

.  t  Penalty. 

it  for  that  purpose,  appoint  a  time  and  place  for  hearing  the  p.s.,  c.  so,  §  93. 

parties,  and  give  due  notice  thereof  to  the  party  against  whom 

the  application  is  made,  and  after  such  notice  and  hearing  may, 

if  in  its  judgment  the  public  health  or  the  public  comfort  and 

convenience  so  require,  order  any  person  to  desist  and  cease 

from  further  carrying  on  said  trades  or  occupations  in  such 

building  or  premises  ;  and  any  person  thereafter  continuing  so  1874 

to  occupy  or  use  such  building  or  premises  shall  forfeit  a  sum 

not  exceeding  two  hundred  dollars  for  every  month  of  such 

occupancy  and  use,  and  in  like  proportion  for  a  longer  or 

shorter  time. 

Precisely  the  same  power  is  given  by  sect.  84,  chap.  80  of  the  Public 
Statutes,  to  the  local  boards  of  health,  as  by  this  section  is  given  to 
the  state  board.  The  only  difference  is  this,  that  the  state  board  is 
bound  to  give  notice  to  a  party,  and  allow  him  a  hearing,  before  it  can 
pass  an  order  of  prohibition ;  but  the  local  boards  may  pass  an  order 
of  prohibition  without  any  previous  notice. 

Sawyer  v.  State  Board  of  Health,  125  Mass.  191. 

The  same  right  to  appeal  to  a  jury  from  an  order  of  the  state  board 
exists  as  is  provided  for  an  appeal  from  an  order  of  a  local  board 
under  sect.  84. 

Sawyer  v.  State  Board  of  Health,  125  Mass.  191. 

111.  The  supreme  judicial  court  in  term  time  or  vacation  injunction  to 

.    .        . .       ,  ...  ,  prevent  offen- 

may  issue  an  injunction  to  prevent  the  occupancy,  use,  enlarge-  give  trades, 
ment,  or  extension  of  any  building  or  premises  occupied  or  P' S'' c-  80'  * 94* 
used  for  the  trades  or  occupations  aforesaid,  without  the  writ-  1^71 
ten  consent  and  permission  being  first  obtained  ;  and  also  in 
like  manner  to  enforce  the  orders  of  the  state  board  issued 
under  the  preceding  section. 

A  bill  in  equity  to  restrain  by  injunction  a  person  from  occupying 
and  using  a  building  for  carrying  on  the  business  of  slaughtering  cattle, 
sheep  or  other  animals,  without  the  written  consent  of  the  selectmen, 
is  properly  brought  in  the  name  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  town. 
Inhabitants  of  Watertown  v.  Mayo,  109  Mass.  315. 


46 


Other  remedies 
not  impaired  by 
preceding  pro- 
visions. 

P.  S.,  c.  80,  §  95. 

1874 


Corporations 
may  be  formed 
for  buying  and 
slaughtering 
swine,  etc. 
P.  S.,  c.  107,  §  1. 


1874 


May  take 
hind,  with 
approval  of 
state  board  of 
health ;  to  rile 
a  description 
in  registry  of 
deeds. 

P.S.,  c.  107,  § 


1874 


Liability  for 
damages. 
Trial  by  jury. 
P.S.,  c.  107,  §3. 


1874 


112.  The  three  preceding  sections  shall  not  be  so  construed 
as  to  impair  any  other  remedies  which  may  exist  in  cases  of 
nuisance. 

SWINE-SLAUGHTERING  ASSOCIATIONS . 

113.  Three  or  more  persons  who  associate  themselves 
together  by  such  an  agreement  in  writing  as  is  described  in 
section  sixteen  of  chapter  one  hundred  and  six  of  the  Public 
Statutes,  with  a  capital  of  not  less  than  one  hundred  thousand 
nor  more  than  five  hundred  thousand  dollars,  with  the  intention 
of  forming  a  corporation  for  the  purpose  of  buying  and  slaughter- 
ing swine  and  of  melting  and  rendering  and  pork- packing,  upon 
complying  with  the  provisions  of  section  twenty-one  of  said 
chapter  shall  be  and  remain  a  corporation,  with  all  the  powers, 
rights,  and  privileges,  and  subject  to  all  the  duties,  limitations, 
and  restrictions,  contained  in  said  chapter,  except  as  hereinafter 
provided. 

114.  Such  corporation  may  take  and  hold  by  purchase  or 
otherwise  such  parcel  of  land,  not  exceeding  one  hundred  acres 
in  extent,  and  situated  in  such  place,  as  the  state  board  of 
health  may  determine  to  be  suitable  for  said  business  ;  and 
shall,  within  sixty  days  from  the  time  of  taking  any  land  other 
wise  than  by  purchase,  cause  to  be  signed  by  its  president  and 
filed  in  the  registry  of  deeds  for  the  county  or  district  wherein 
said  lands  lie  a  description  thereof  as  certain  as  is  required  in  a 
common  conveyance  of  lands  and  a  statement  of  the  purpose 
for  which  the  lands  are  taken ;  but  no  land  shall  be  so  taken 
without  the  approval  in  writing  of  the  mayor  and  aldermen  of 
the  city  or  of  the  selectmen  of  the  town  in  which  it  is  situated. 

115.  Such  corporation  shall  be  liable  to  pay  all  damages 
sustained  by  any  persons  in  their  property  by  the  taking  of  any 
land  for  the  purposes  of  this  chapter.  A  person  sustaining 
damages  as  aforesaid,  and  not  agreeing  upon  the  sum  to  be  paid 
therefor,  may  apply  by  petition  for  the  assessment  of  his  dam- 
ages, at  any  time  within  one  year  from  the  taking  of  said  land, 
to  the  superior  court  in  the  county  in  which  said  land  is  situate  ; 
such  petition  may  be  filed  in  the  clerk's  office  of  said  court  in 
vacation  or  in  term  time,  and  the  clerk  shall  thereupon  issue  a 
summons  to  the  corporation,  returnable,  if  issued  in  Vacation,  to 
the  then  next  term  of  the  said  court,  held  fourteen  days  at  least 
after  the  issuing  of  said  summons,  and,  if  in  term  time,  return- 
able on  such  day  as  the  court  shall  order,  to  appear  and  answer 


47 


to  the  said  petition  ;  the  said  summons  shall  be  served  fourteen 
days  at  least  before  the  return  day  thereof  by  leaving  a  copy 
thereof  with  the  clerk  of  the  corporation,  and  upon  the  return 
of  said  summons,  duly  served,  the  said  petition  shall  stand  as  a 
cause  in  said  court ;  and  upon  said  petition  all  questions  of  fact 
relating  to  the  damages  sustained  by  the  petitioner  shall  be 
heard  and  determined,  and  the  amount  of  such  damages  shall  be 
assessed  by  a  jury,  unless  the  parties  in  writing  waive  their  right 
to  a  jury,  and  agree  that  the  same  shall  be  determined  by  the 
court ;  and  the  verdict  of  said  jury,  being  accepted  and  recorded 
by  the  court,  or  the  award  of  the  court  if  jury  trial  is  waived, 
shall  be  final  and  conclusive,  and  judgment  shall  be  rendered 
and  execution  issued  thereon  ;  and  costs  shall  be  recovered  by 
the  petitioner  if  the  amount  of  said  judgment  exceeds  the 
amount  offered  him  for  his  damage  before  the  filing  of  said 
petition,  otherwise  the  corporation  shall  recover  its  costs. 

116.  Such  corporation  shall  proceed  to  build  upon  such  to  build  suita- 
land,  suitable  buildings  for  the  slaughtering  of  swine  and  for  regulation"8^ 
melting  and  rendering,  and  all  necessary  stables  and  out-build-  p?s!,bcTio7,  §  4. 
ings.     No  such  buildings  shall  be  erected  until  the  plans 

thereof,  with  all  details  of  construction,  have  been  submitted  to  1874 
and  approved  by  said  state  board,  or  some  person  designated  by 
it  to  examine  them.  The  corporation  shall  carry  on  all  its 
business  in  accordance  with  such  regulations  as  said  state  board 
shall,  from  time  to  time,  establish  and  furnish  in  writing  to  the 
clerk  of  the  corporation  ;  and  for  each  violation  of  said  regula- 
tions, it  shall  forfeit  not  less  than  twenty  nor  more  than  five 
hundred  dollars. 

117.  Subject  to  the  foregoing  provisions,  such  corporation  such  corpora- 
may  manufacture  and  sell  any  of  the  usual  products  of  said  on  slaughteriug 
slaughtering  and  melting  and  rendering  business,  or  may  lease  or  Each  member 
permit  other  persons  to  use  their  buildings  or  parts  thereof,  on  o^preniifesf1 
such  terms  as  may  be  agreed  upon.    Each  member  of  the  cor-  p's"  c' 107' §  5* 
poration  may  slaughter  swine  on  said  premises,  subject  to  such  ^374 
regulations  and  tariff  of  prices  as  the  corporation  may  by  vote 

at  any  regular  meeting  establish,  and  to  the  regulations  of  the 
said  state  board.  A  person  engaged  in  business  on  the  prem- 
ises of  such  corporation,  who  violates  any  regulations  of  said 
state  board,  shall  forfeit  not  less  than  twenty  nor  more  than 
five  hundred  dollars. 


48 


1878 


POLLUTION  OF  RIVERS  AND  SOURCES  OF  WATER  AND  ICE  SUPPLIES. 

Sources  of  H8.    No  sewage,  drainage,  or  refuse  or  polluting  matter,  of 

water  supply  °  1  ° 

not  to  be         such  kind  and  amount  as  either  by  itself  or  in  connection  with 

polluted.  ^ 

p.s.,  c. so,  §96.  other  matter  will  corrupt  or  impair  the  quality  of  the  water  of 
any  pond  or  stream  hereinafter  referred  to,  for  domestic  use,  or 
render  it  injurious  to  health,  and  no  human  excrement,  shall  be 
discharged  into  any  pond  used  as  a  source  of  water  supply  by  a 
city  or  town,  or  upon  whose  banks  any  filter  basin  so  used  is 
situated,- or  into  any  stream  so  used,  or  upon  whose  banks  such 
filter  basin  is  situated,  within  twenty  miles  above  the  point 
where  such  supply  is  taken,  or  into  any  feeders  of  such  pond 
or  stream  within  such  twenty  miles. 
Certain  rights       H9.    The  preceding  section  shall  not  be  construed  to  destroy 

not  to  be  im-  1  &  J 

paired.  Pro-  or  impair  rights  acquired  by  legislative  grant  prior  to  the  first 
applicable  to     day  of  July  in  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy-eight,  or 

certain  rivers.  .  .  .    "    .  , 

p.  s.,  c.  so,  §  97.  to  destroy  or  impair  prescriptive  rights  of  drainage  or  discharge, 
to  the  extent  to  which  they  lawfully  existed  on  that  date  ;  and 
nothing  therein  contained  shall  be  construed  to  authorize  the 
pollution  of  any  waters  in  this  commonwealth,  in  any  manner 
contrary  to  law  ;  nor  shall  it  be  applicable  to  the  Merrimack  or 
Connecticut  Rivers,  or  to  so  much  of  the  Concord  River  as  lies 
Supreme  or  within  the  limits  of  the  city  of  Lowell.  The  supreme  judicial 
or  superior  court,  in  term  time  or  vacation,  upon  the  application 
of  the  mayor  of  a  city  or  the  selectmen  of  a  town  interested, 
issVisf  n'.96'  may  grant  au  injunction  against  any  violation  of  the  provisions 
of  section  ninety-six  of  chapter  eighty  of  the  Public  Statutes. 

If  a  pond  and  the  waters  of  a  stream  running  into  the  pond  are  taken 
for  the  purpose  of  supplying  a  city  with  pure  water,  it  is  no  defence  to 
a  petition  in  equity,  under  the  Statutes  of  1884,  chap.  154,  for  an  injunc- 
tion to  restrain  a  person  from  polluting  the  stream,  that  the  city  has, 
by  means  of  a  dike,  prevented  the  waters  of  the  stream  from  running 
into  and  polluting  the  waters  of  the  pond. 

Martin  v.  Gleason,  139  Mass.  183. 


1878 


superior  court 
may  grant  an 
injunction 
against  a  viola 


Cities  and  towns  120.  Any  city  or  town  having  a  water  supply  may  contract 
building  sewers  with  any  other  city  or  town  situated  in  the  water-shed  of  such 
supp?y!ctwatei  supply  to  contribute,  on  such  terms  as  may  be  deemed  proper, 
1888,  loo.         to  ^  cQgt  o£  |3uji^jng  a  sewer  or  system  of  sewers  which  will 

aid  in  protecting  any  part  of  the  source  of  such  water  supply 
from  pollution. 


49 


121.  Whoever  wilfully  or  maliciously  defiles,  corrupts,  or  Corrupting 

J  *  .      spring,  etc.,  or 

makes  impure  any  spring,  or  other  source  of  water,  or  reservoir,  injuring  aque- 
or  destroys  or  injures  any  pipe,  conductor  of  water,  or  other  p.s.,  c.  208,  §  7. 
property  pertaining  to  an  aqueduct,  or  aids  or  abets  in  any  such 
trespass,  shall  be  punished  by  fine  not  exceeding  one  thousand  1843 
dollars,  or  by  imprisonment  in  the  jail  not  exceeding  one 
year.  / 

122.  Whoever  wilfully  deposits  excrement,  or  foul  or  decay-  Sources  of 

*^  .     domestic  water- 

ing matter,  in  any  water  used  for  the  purpose  of  domestic  supply. 

water-supply,  or  upon  the  shore  thereof  within  five  rods  of 
the  water,  shall  be  punished  by  fine  not  exceeding  fifty  dollars, 
or  by  imprisonment  not  exceeding  thirty  days  ;  and  a  police 
officer  or  constable  of  a  city  or  town  in  which  such  water  1379 
is  wholly  or  partly  situated,  acting  within  the  limits  of  his 
city  or  town,  and  any  executive  officer  or  agent  of  a  water 
board,  board  of  water  commissioners,  or  water  company  furnish- 
ing water  for  domestic  purposes,  acting  upon  the  premises  of 
such  board  or  company  and  not  more  than  five  rods  from  the 
water,  may  without  a  warrant  arrest  any  person  found  in  the  act 
of  violating  the  provisions  of  this  section,  and  detain  him  until 
a  complaint  can  be  made  against  him  therefor.  But  this 
section  shall  not  be  so  construed  as  to  interfere  with  the 
sewage  of  a  city,  town,  or  public  institution,  or  to  prevent 
boating,  bathing,  or  fishing,  or  the  enriching  of  land  for  agri- 
cultural purposes  by  the  owner  or  occupant  thereof. 

A  landlord  is  liable  for  the  acts-of  his  tenant  in  polluting  the  waters 
of  a  brook,  which  is  a  natural  watercourse  running;  through  the  prem- 
ises, by  discharging  sink  water  therein,  if  the  building  leased  is  adapted 
and  intended  to  be  used  in  the  manner  complained  of,  whether  he 
retains  control  over  the  house  or  not. 

In  an  action  for  polluting  the  waters  of  a  brook,  which  is  a  natural 
watercourse,  if  the  injury  to  the  plaintiff  resulting  from  the  defendant's 
acts  can  be  specifically  ascertained,  it  is  no  defence  that  the  plaintiff 
has  also  polluted  the  brook. 

A  land  owner  may  collect  the  surface  water  of  his  land,  and  the 
water  drawn  from  wells  therein,  into  an  artificial  stream,  and  discharge 
this  stream  into  a  natural  watercourse  running  through  his  land, 
provided  that  this  is  done  in  the  reasonable  use  of  his  land,  and  that 
the  volume  of  water  is  not  increased  beyond  the  natural  capacity  of  the 
watercourse  to  discharge  it,  and  the  land  of  an  adjoining  owner  is  not 
thereby  overflowed  and  materially  injured. 

Jackman  v.  Arlington  Mills,  137  Mass.  277. 


50 


Bathing  in  123.    Whoever  bathes  in  a  pond,  the  water  of  which  is  used 

water-supply  *  ' 

Penary6  for  tne  PurP0Se  °f  domestic  water-supply  for  a  city  or  town, 

1884, 172.  shall  be  punished  by  fine  not  exceeding  ten  dollars. 

Penalty  for  124.    Whoever  drives  a  horse  on  the  ice  on  a  pond,  the  water 

driving  horse  #  1 

on  ice  of  pond    of  which  is  used  for  the  purpose  of  domestic  water-supply  for  a 

used  for  water-      ,  1      1  1  1  J 

supply,  etc.  city  or  town,  shall  be  punished  by  fine  not  exceeding  fifty 
p.  a.,  c.  80,  §101.  ,  „  . 

1880  dollars,  or  imprisonment  not  exceeding  thirty  clays. 

above  tiont°  ^ne  Preceding  section  shall   not   apply  to  persons 

p.s.,c.8o,§io2.  engaged  in  cutting  or  harvesting  ice  from  such  ponds,  or  in 

hauling  logs,  wood,  or  lumber. 

Complaint  of        126.    Upon  complaint  in  writing  of  not  less  than  twenty- 
sale  of  impure  J 
ice.  state       five  consumers  of  ice  which  is  cut,  sold,  and  held  for  sale  from 

board  may  hear 

partu  s  inter-  any  pond  or  stream  in  this  Commonwealth,  alleging  that  said 
1886,  287,  §  i.  ice  is  impure  and  injurious  to  health,  the  state  board  of  health 
may  appoint  a  time  and  place  for  hearing  parties  to  be  affected 
and  give  due  notice  thereof  to  such  parties,  and  after  such 
hearing  said  board  may  make  such  orders  concerning  the  sale  of 
said  ice  as  in  its  judgment  the  public  health  requires. 
b?i8suednbmay  ^e  supreme  judicial  court  in  term  time  or  vacation 

i8?6r<28?  c§°2irt'  may  issue  ai1  injunction  to  enforce  such  orders  of  the  state  board. 
Parties  may         128.    Such  orders  of  the  state  board  of  health  shall  be  served 
apjn-ui  toa°f     upon  any  person  or  persons  who  are  or  have  been  selling  said 
1886,' 287,  §  3.     impure  ice,  and  any  party  aggrieved  thereby  shall  have  the 
right  of  appeal  to  a  jury  and  be  subject  to  the  provisions  of 
sections  eighty-eight,  eighty-nine  and  ninety  of  chapter  eighty 
of  the  Public  Statutes,  and  the  court  may  render  such  judgment 
as  to  costs  as  in  its  discretion  may  seem  just. 
Water  boards,       129.   Water  boards,  water  commissioners,  and  water  companies 

etc.,  to  make  '  7  1 

to  state  board*18  ma^m&  use>  as  a  source  of  water-supply,  of  any  pond,  stream, 
p.s.,c.8o,  §103.  reservoir,  or  well,  within  the  Commonwealth,  and  distributing 
the  waters  thereof  for  public,  domestic,  and  general  uses,  shall 
1879  make  returns  to  the  state  board  on  or  before  the  first  day  of 

November  in  every  third  year  beginning  with  the  year  eighteen 
hundred  and  eighty-two  of  the  facts  hereinafter  enumerated : 
provided,  that  the  expense  incurred  by  any  such  board,  commis- 
sioners, or  company,  shall  not  exceed  fifty  dollars.  And  the 
state  board  shall  publish  triennially,  in  its  report  to  the  legisla- 
ture, the  returns  received,  arranged  by  counties  separately,  and 
those  from  each  county  alphabetically. 

130.  Each  of  such  water  boards,  commissioners,  and  com- 
panies shall  state  in  the  proper  places  on  the  blanks  which  the 
state  board  shall,  on  application,  furnish  for  the  purpose,  — 


Form  of  return 
P.S..C.80,  §104 


51 


1.  Its  name,  charter,  or  other  legal  basis,  and  place  of  business. 

2.  The  source  or  sources  of  its  water-supply,  and  the  name,  if  any, 
and  location  of  each. 

3.  The  superficial  area  of  its  water-surface,  if  pond,  reservoir,  or 
large  well. 

4.  The  area  of  watershed  supplying  such  source  or  sources. 

5.  The  general  geological  and  topographical  character  of  the  water- 
Shed. 

G.  The  estimated  capacity  of  each  such  source  by  average  daily 
flow. 

7.  The  estimated  capacity  of  each  such  source  by  minimum  daily 
flow. 

8.  Whether  the  watershed  is  also  wholly  or  in  part  that  of  other 
ponds,  streams,  or  reservoirs,  besides  that  used  by  the  party  making* 
return  ;  and  if  so,  to  what  extent. 

9.  Whether  or  not  the  source  employed  by  the  party  making  return 
is  used  jointly  by  some  other  party  for  a  water-source;  and  if  so,  by 
whom. 

10.  Whether  there  are  other  sources'within  ten  miles,  not  already 
appropriated  by  law,  that  could  be  availed  of  in  connection  with  the 
source  or  sources  now  enjoyed  by  the  party  making  return ;  and  if  so, 
what,  and  their  location,  area,  watershed,  and  the  means  necessary  to 
connect,  with  the  distance  from  present  source,  and  from  territory  to 
be  supplied. 

11.  What  danger  of  contamination  the  waters  at  present  held  are 
liable  to. 

12.  Whether  or  not  an  analysis  has  been  made  of  the  water  at 
present  used,  and  the  results  of  any  such;  by  whom,  and  where. 

13.  Whether  the  waters  at  present  used  have  been  stocked  with  fish  ; 
if  so,  to  what  extent,  by  whom  and  where. 

14.  What,  up  to  date,  has  been  the  cost  of  the  water-works  in  use, 
iucluding  rights  and  lands  taken,  aud  all  damages  paid ;  stating  cost  of 
water-rights  separately,  and  to  whom  paid. 

15.  Whether  the  storage  capacity  of  the  present  source  can  be  in- 
creased, and  at  what  probable  cost,  exclusive  of  damage  by  flowing, 
and  at  what  damage  to  private  parties  or  corporations. 

16.  Whether  any  town,  village,  or  city  discharges  its  sewers  or 
drains  into  the  source  used  by  the  returning  party,  or  their  tributaries. 

17.  The  population  of  the  town,  city,  or  village  so  discharging  its 
sewers  or  drains  into  said  source,' and  the  character  of  its  manufactures. 

18.  The  apparent  results  of  such  sewage. 

19.  The  average  daily  consumption  for  the  year  of  the  population 
supplied  by  the  party  making  return. 

20.  The  percentum  used  by  families. 

21.  The  average  consumption  per  family,  per  day. 

22.  The  probable  increase  of  demand,  as  near  as  can  be  estimated 
for  the  next  year. 

23.  The  water  rates  established. 


52 


24.  The  system  of  distribution,  whether  by  gravity,  stand-pipe, 
direct  pumping,  reservoir,  or  otherwise. 

25.  The  condition  of  water  debt  and  sinking  fund. 

26.  How  the  effluent  water  is  now  got  rid  of. 

27.  Into  what  stream  or  body  of  water  it  finally  flows. 

28.  What  protection  against  impurity  of  present  source  not  now 
provided  is  desired. 

29.  What  additional  expense  such  protection  would  involve,  and  to 
whom. 

state  board  to       131.    The  state  board  shall,  on  application  from  the  parties 

furnish  blanks.  rL  1 

Penalty  for  neg-  who  are  required  to  make  said  returns,  furnish  the  requisite 

lect  to  make 

returns,  state  blanks  therefor ;  and  any  water  board,  commissioners,  or  coin- 
board  to  prose-  •  _  i         .  i 

cute.  pany  required  to  make  said  returns  shall  for  every  neglect  or 

p.s.,c.8o,§io5.  faijure  g0  to  C|Q^  forfeit  fifty  dollars  to  the  use  of  the  local 

board  of  health,  or  the  proper  officers  acting  as  such,  of  the 
city  or  town  in  which  such  delinquent  has  its  principal  office. 
And  the  state  board  shall  prosecute,  by  an  action  of  tort  in  the 
name  of  the  Commonwealth,  for  the  recovery  of  the  penalty  or 
forfeit  herein  imposed. 


Chapter  extends 
to  cities. 
P.S.,c.80,§106. 


State  board  to 
have  supervi- 
sion of  inland 
waters.  May 
employ  engi- 
neers and 
clerks.  Shall 
report  its  do- 
ings. Shall 
recommend 
legislation  and 
plans. 

1886,  274,  §  1. 
1888,  375,  §  1. 


GENERAL  PROVISION. 

132.  The  provisions  of  this  chapter  (c.  80,  Public  Statutes) 
extend  to  cities  so  far  as  the  same  are  not  inconsistent  with 
their  several  charters  or  acts  in  amendment  thereof. 

133.  The  state  board  of  health  shall  have  the  general  over- 
sight and  care  of  all  inland  waters,  and  shall  be  furnished  with 
maps,  plans  and  documents  suitable  for  this  purpose,  and 
records  of  all  its  doings  in  relation  thereto  shall  be  kept.  It  may 
employ  such  engineers  and  clerks  and  other  assistants  as  it  may 
deem  necessary  :  provided,  that  no  contracts  or  other  acts  which 
involve  the  payment  of  money  from  the  treasury  of  the  Com- 
monwealth shall  be  made  or  done  without  an  appropriation 
expressly  made  therefor  by  the  general  court.  It  shall  annu- 
ally on  or  before  the  tenth  day  of  January  report  to  the  general 
court  its  doings  in  the  preceding  year,  and  at  the  same  time 
submit  estimates  of  the  sums  required  to  meet  the  expenses  of 
said  board  in  relation  to  the  care  and  oversight  of  inland  waters 
for  the  ensuing  year,  and  it  shall  also  recommend  legislation 
and  suitable  plans  for  such  systems  of  main  sewers  as  it  may 
deem  necessary  for  the  preservation  of  the  public  health,  and 
for  the  purification  and  prevention  of  pollution  of  the  ponds, 
streams,  and  inland  waters  of  the  Commonwealth. 


53 


134.    Said  board  shall  from  time  to  time,  as  it  may  deem  state  board 
expedient,  cause  examinations  of  the  said  waters  to  be  made  inland  waters 
for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining  whether  the  same  are  adapted  nVfo^domestic 
for  use  as  sources  of  domestic  water  supplies  or  are  in  a  measurestopre- 
condition  likely  to  impair  the  interests  of  the  public  or  persons  Indtconductn' 
lawfully  using  the  same,  or  imperil  the  public  health.    It  shall  KeSpfoy* 


recommend  measures  for  prevention  of  the  pollution  of  such  2J4 


May  employ 
r  §2- 

waters,  and  for  removal  of  substances  and  causes  of  every  kind  i888»  375,  §  2. 
which  may  be  liable  to  cause  pollution  thereof,  in  order  to  pro- 
tect and  develop  the  rights  and  property  of  the  Commonwealth 
therein  and  to  protect  the  public  health.  It  shall  have  authority 
to  conduct  experiments  to  determine  the  best  practicable 
methods  of  purification  of  drainage  and  sewage  or  disposal  of 
the  same.  For  the  purposes  aforesaid  it  may  employ  such  ex- 
pert assistance  as  may  be  necessary. 

135.    It  shall  from  time  to  time  consult  with  and  advise  the    shall  consult 
authorities  of  cities  and  towns,  or  with  corporations,  firms  or  authorities  of 
individuals  either  already  having  or  intending  to  introduce  Sstc^ntroduc™ 
systems  of  water  supply,  drainage  or  sewerage,  as  to  the  most  bup^LbI^I 
appropriate  source  of  supply,  the  best  practicable  method  of  seweiage- 
assuring  the  purity  thereof  or  of  disposing  of  their  drainage  or 
sewage,  having  regard  to  the  present  and  prospective  needs  and 
interests  of  other  cities,  towns,  corporations,  firms  or  individ- 
uals which  maybe  affected  thereby.    It  shall  also  from  time    shall  consult 

.     . .  .. ,         ,     ,   .  ,.  -1  with  and  advise 

to  time  consult  with  and  advise  persons  or  corporations  engaged  corporations  as 
or  intending  to  engage  in  any  manufacturing  or  other  business,  p°o&aiTaiuthori- 
drainage  or  sewage  from  which  may  tend  to  cause  the  pollution  porat°ons°o 
of  any  inland  water,  as  to  the  best  practicable  method  of  pre-  the  boar^f"8 fc° 
venting  such  pollution  by  the  interception,  disposal  or  purifica- 
tion of  such  drainage  or  sewage  :  provided,  that  no  person  shall 
be  compelled  to  bear  the  expense  of  such  consultation  or  advice, 
or  of  experiments  made  for  the  purposes  of  this  act.    All  such 
authorities,  corporations,  firms  and  individuals   are  hereby 
required  to  give  notice  to  said  board  of  their  intentions  in  the 
premises,  and  to  submit  for  its  advice  outlines  of  their  pro- 
posed plans  or  schemes  in  relation  to  water  supply  and  disposal 
of  drainage  and  sewage,  and  all  petitions  to  the  legislature  for  Petitions  to 
authority  to  introduce  a  system  of  water  supply,  drainage  or  accompanied  be 
sewerage  shall  be  accompanied  by  a  copy  of  the  recommenda-  ^o^i^lce  °f 
tion  and  advice  of  the  said  board  thereon.    Said  board  shall  Board  shall 

•  in-  •       bring  cases  of 

bring  to  the  notice  of  the  attorney-general  all  instances  which  neglect  to  notice 


54 


of  attorney- 
general,  and 
report  to 
legislature. 
1886,  274,  §  3. 
1888,  375,  §  3. 


Definition  of 
"  drainage  " 
and  "  sewage. 
1888,  375,  §  4. 


may  come  to  its  knowledge  of  omission  to  comply  with  existing 
laws  respecting  the  pollution  of  water  supplies  and  inland 
waters,  and  shall  annually  report  to  the  legislature  any  specific 
cases  not  covered  by  the  provisions  of  existing  laws,  which  in 
its  opinion  call  for  further  legislation. 

136.  In  this  act  the  term  "drainage"  refers  to  rainfall, 
surface  and  subsoil  water  only,  and  "  sewage  "  refers  to  domestic 
and  manufacturing  filth  and  refuse. 


CEMETERIES,  BURIALS,  AND  REMOVAL  OR  TRANSPORTATION  OF 

BODIES. 

Lots  to  be  137.    Lots  in  cemeteries  shall  be  held  indivisible,  and  upon 

indivisible,  but  r 

inheritable.      the  decease  of  a  proprietor,  his  heirs  at  law,  or  the  devisees  of 

Representatives 

of,  how  desig-    such  lot  if  devised,  shall  succeed  to  his  privileges.    If  there  is 

nated.  '  1  & 

p.  s.,  c.  82,  §  3.  more  than  one  heir  or  devisee,  they  shall  within  nine  months 
from  such  decease  designate  in  writing  to  the  clerk  of  the  cor- 

1841 

poration  which  of  their  number  shall  represent  the  lot ;  and  on 
their  failure  so  to  designate,  the  board  of  trustees  or  directors 
of  the  corporation  shall  enter  of  record  which  of  said  heirs  or 
devisees  shall  represent  the  lot  while  such  failure  continues. 
precedin"8sec-  ^ne  Preceding  section  shall  apply  to  all  tombs  in  pub- 

tion  to  apply  to  \[Q  cemeteries  in  cities,  and  the  boards  of  health  in  cities  'shall 

tombs  in  public 

cemeteries  in     exercise,  in  regard  to  such  tombs,  the  powers  granted  by  said 
p.  s.,  c.  82,  §  4.  section  to  trustees  or  directors  of  cemetery  corporations. 
1877  139.    Boards  of  health  of  cities  and  towns  may  prohibit  the 

he°aaith8may  use  by  undertakers,  for  the  purpose  of  speculation,  of  tombs  as 
uons! regula'  places  of  deposit  for  bodies  committed  to  them  for  burial ;  may, 
Fssfj^Tsfl'i.19"  if  in  their  opinion  the  public  health  requires  it,  close  any  tomb, 
burial  ground,  cemetery  or  other  place  of  burial  within  the  city 
18 1G  or  town,  for  such  length  of  time  as  they  may  deem  necessary 

for  the  protection  of  the  public  health ;  may  make  all  regula- 
tions which  they  judge  necessary  concerning  burial  grounds  and 
interments  within  their  respective  limits,  and  may  establish 
penalties  not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars  for  any  breach  of 
such  regulations. 

The  powers  given  to  boards  of  health  are  large  and  general  to  make 
regulations  for  the  interment  of  the  dead  and  respecting  burying- 
grounds. 

Withington  v.  Inhabitants  of  Harvard,  8  Cush.  68. 
This  section  is  not  confined  in  its  operation  to  acts  done  within  the 
burial-grounds.    The  word  "interments"  properly  includes  and  de- 


55 


scribes  the  removal  of  the  bodies  of  deceased  persons  for  the  purpose 
of  burial. 

That  this  necessary  duty  shall  be  performed,  especially  when  under- 
taken for  hire,  by  suitable  and  trustworthy  persons,  and  that  the  mov- 
ing of  dead  bodies  through  the  public  streets  shall  be  conducted  with 
decency  and  safety,  are  obviously  matters  proper  for  municipal  regula- 
tion, and  which,  as  well  as  the  mode  of  burial-,  may  concern  the  public 
health  to  no  slight  extent. 

Commonwealth  v.  Goodrich,  13  Allen,  546. 

The  board  of  health  of  a  city  may  establish  a  regulation  prohibiting 
any  person,  unless  appointed  an  undertaker  or  otherwise  authorized 
by  the  board  of  health,  from  moving  from  any  house  or  other  place 
in  the  city  to  any  place  of  burial  the  body  of  any  deceased  person,  and 
making  it  the  duty  of  undertakers  to  attend  funerals  when  required, 
and  to  collect  and  pay  over  the  burial  fees,  and  requiring,  further,  each 
undertaker  to  give  bonds  in  the  sum  of  two  hundred  dollars. 

The  refusal  or  neglect  of  a  person  appointed  an  undertaker  to  give 
the  bond  required  by  the  regulation  would  justify  the  revocation  of  his 
appointment  without  any  previous  notice  to  him. 

Commonwealth  v.  Goodrich,  13  Allen,  546. 


140.  Notice  of  such  regulations  shall  be  given  by  publish-  Boards  of  health 
ing  the  same  in  some  newspaper  of  the  city  or  town  or,  if  there  regulations. 

,  ,  ,  .  .  ut        l         P.  S.,  c.  82,  §20. 

is  no  such  newspaper,  by  posting  a  copy  in  some  public  place 
therein  ;  which  shall  be  deemed  legal  notice  to  all  persons. 

141.  For  every  interment  in  violation  of  section  eighteen,  Penalty  for 
chapter  eighty- two  of  the  Public  Statutes,  in  a  city  or  town  in  v^otluo^oYaec- 
which  the  notice  prescribed  in  the  preceding  section  has  been  p?s.?ch82,e§'2i. 
given,  the  owner  of  the  land  so  used  shall  forfeit  not  less  than  1855 
twenty  nor  more  than  one  hundred  dollars. 

Sect.  18  of  chap.  82,  Public  Statutes,  provides  that,  "Except  in  the 
case  of  the  erection  or  use  of  a  tomb  on  private  land,  for  the  exclusive 
use  of  the  family  of  the  owner,  no  land  other  than  that  already  so 
used  or  appropriated  shall  be  used  for  the  purpose  of  burial,  unless  by 
permission  of  the  town  or  of  the  mayor  and  aldermen  of  the  city  in 
which  the  same  is  situated." 

142.  Before  a  tomb,  burial  ground,  or  cemetery  is  closed  by  Notice  to  he 
order  of  such  board  of  health  for  a  time  longer  than  One  month,  closing  tombs, 
all  persons  interested  shall  have  an  opportunity  to  be  heard,  hoa'i-d y  mder  °f 
and  personal  notice  of  the  time  and  place  of  hearing  shall  be  p-s  »c.  82,  §22. 
given  to  at  least  one  owner  of  the  tomb,  and  to  three  at  least,  ^§55 

if  so  many  there  are,  of  the  proprietors  of  such  burial  ground 
or  cemetery,  and  notice  shall  also  be  published  two  successive 


56 


1855 


weeks  at  least  preceding  such  hearing,  in  two  newspapers,  if  so 
many  there  are,  published  in  the  county, 
mder  oVboard.  Tne  owner  of  a  tomb  aggrieved  by  the  order  of  the 

p.s.,c.  82,  §23.  board  of  health  closing  a  tomb,  burial-ground,  or  cemetery, 
may  appeal  therefrom,  and  at  any  time  within  six  months  from 
the  date  of  the  order  enter  his  appeal  in  the  superior  court ;  and 
1850  tne  aPPeHant  shall  give  the  board  of  health  fourteen  days' 

notice  of  his  appeal  previous  to  the  entry  thereof.  But  the 
order  of  the  board  shall  remain  in  force  until  a  decision  is  had 
on  the  appeal. 

^ur  b°  CoBdtsby  ApP£als  shall  be  tried  in  regular  course  before  a  jury, 

r.s.,  c.  82,  §24.  and  if  the  jury  find  that  the  tomb,  burial  ground  or  cemetery 

1885,  278,  §  2. 

so  closed  was  not  a  nuisance  nor  injurious  to  the  public  health 
at  the  time  of  the  order,  and  that  the  closing  thereof  was  not 
necessary  for  the  protection  of  the  public  health,  the  court 
shall  rescind  such  order  so  far  as  it  affects  such  tomb,  burial 
ground  or  cemetery  ;  and  execution  for  the  costs  of  the  appeal 
shall  issue  in  favor  of  the  appellant,  against  the  city  or  town  in 
which  the  same  was  situated.  But  if  the  order  is  sustained 
execution  shall  issue  for  double  costs  against  the  appellant  in 
favor  of  the  board  of  health  for  the  use  of  the  city  or  town. 
Burial  or  145.    No  human  body  shall  be  buried  or  removed  from  any 

removal  or  body  J  ^ 

not  permitted    c^y  or  town  until  a  proper  certificate  has  been  given  by  the 

until  certificate         J  11  0  ^ 

has  been  given,  clerk  or  registrar  to  the  undertaker,  sexton,  or  other  person 

P.  fe.,  c.  32,  §  5. 

1883, 124.  performing  the  burial  or  removing  the  body.  Such  certificate 
shall  state  that  the  facts  required  by  chapter  thirty-two  of  the 
Public  Statutes  have  been  returned  and  recorded  ;  and  no  clerk 
or  registrar  shall  give  such  certificate  or  burial  permit  until  the 
certificate  of  the  cause  of  death  has  been  obtained  from 
the  physician,  if  any,  in  attendance  at  the  last  sickness  of  the 
deceased  and  placed  in  the  hands  of  said  clerk  or  registrar  ; 
and  in  cities  and  towns  where  there  are  boards  of  health,  the 
certificate  of  the  cause  of  death  shall  also  be  approved  by  such 
board  before  a  permit  to  bury  or  remove  is  given  by  the  regis- 
trar or  clerk.  Upon  application,  the  chairman  of  the  board  of 
health,  or  any  physician  employed  by  any  city  or  town  for 
such  purpose,  shall  sign  the  certificate  of  the  cause  of  death  to 
the  best  of  his  knowledge  and  belief,  if  there  has  been  no 
physician  in  attendance.  He  shall  also  sign  such  certificate, 
upon  application,  in  case  of  death  by  dangerous  contagious 
disease,  or  in  any  other  event  when  the  certificate  of  the 


57 


attending  physician  cannot  for  good  and  sufficient  reasons  be 
early  enough  obtained.  In  case  of  death  by  violence,  the 
medical  examiner  attending  shall  furnish  the  requisite  medical 
certificate.  Any  person  violating  the  provisions  of  this  section 
shall  be  punished  by  fine  not  exceeding  twenty-five  dollars. 

146.  No  railroad  corporation,  or  other  common  carrier  or  Transportation 

of  bodies  of  per- 

person,  shall  convey  or  cause  to  be  conveyed,  through  or  from  sons  who  have 
any  city  or  town  in  this  Commonwealth,  the  remains  or  any  tious  disease, 
person  who  has  died  of  small-pox,  scarlet  fever,  diphtheria,  or  be  so  prepared 
typhoid  fever,  until  such  body  has  been  so  encased  and  pre  -  danger. 

1883  1^4  §  ^ 

pared  as  to  preclude  any  danger  of  communicating  the  disease  ' 
to  others  by  its  transportation  ;  and  no  local  registrar  or  clerk 
shall  give  a  permit  for  the  removal  of  such  body  until  he  has 
received  from  the  board  of  health  of  the  city,  or  the  selectmen 
of  the  town  where  the  death  occurred,  a  certificate,  stating  the 
cause  of  death,  and  that  said  body  has  been  prepared  in  the 
manner  set  forth  in  this  section,  which  certificate  shall  be 
delivered  to  the  agent  or  person  who  receives  the  body.  Any  Penalty, 
person  violating  the  provisions  of  this  section  shall  be  punished 
by  fine,  not  exceeding  twenty-five  dollars. 

147.  The  boards  of  health  of  towns  and  the  mayor  and  ^^y^0 
aldermen  of  cities  shall,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  July  in  ^o ard  ofiieaRh. 
each  year,  license  a  suitable  number  of  undertakers  to  take 

charge  of  the  funeral  rites  preliminary  to  the  interment  of  a 
human  body. 

148.  Whoever,  not  being  authorized  by  the  board  of  health,  Violation  of 

°  J  sepulture. 

overseers  of  the  poor,  directors  of  a  workhouse,  or  mayor  and  p.s.,c.207,§47, 
aldermen  or  selectmen  of  a  city  or  town,  or  by  the  board  of 
directors  for  public  institutions  or  overseers  of  the  poor  of  the  1830 
city  of  Boston,  wilfully  digs  up,  disinters,  removes,  or  conveys 
away  a  human  body  or  the  remains  thereof,  or  knowingly  aids 
in  such  disinterment,  removal,  or  conveying  away,  and  who- 
ever is  accessory  thereto  either  before  or  after  the  fact,  shall  be 
punished  by  imprisonment  in  the  state  prison  or  jail  not  exceed- 
ing three  years  or  by  fine  not  exceeding  two  thousand  dollars. 

The  removal  of  a  dead  body  is  not  an  offence  within  the  meaning-  of 
the  above  statute,  unless  it  is  removed  with  the  intent  to  use  it  or  dis- 
pose of  it  for  the  purpose  of  dissection. 

Commonwealth  v.  Slack,  19  Pick.  306. 


58 


CREMATION. 

persons  may6        ^9.    ^ny  nve  or  more  persons  may  associate  themselves 
ti°oTimCp!npo9e  together  in  the  manner  prescribed  by  chapter  one  hundred  and 
SUdtoSea.118   six  of  the  Public  Statutes,  with  a  capital  of  not  less  than  six 
1885, 265,  §  i.     thousand  nor  more  than  fifty  thousand  dollars,  for  the  purpose 
of  providing  the  necessary  appliances  and  facilities  for  the 
proper  disposal  by  incineration  of  the  bodies  of  the  dead  ;  and 
corporations  so  established  shall  have  the  same  powers  and  privi- 
leges and  be  subject  to  the  same  duties,  liabilities  and  restric- 
tions as  other  corporations  established  under  said  chapter, 
except  as  hereinafter  provided.    The  par  value  of  shares  in  the 
capital  stock  of  corporations  organized  under  the  provisions  of 
this  act  shall  be  either  ten  or  fifty  dollars. 
May  hold  real       150.    Every  such  corporation  may  acquire  by  gift,  devise 

eel  ate  as  ap-  »  1  J         ^  J    0  1 

proved  by  state  or  purchase,  and  hold  in  fee  simple  so  much  real  estate  not 

board  of  health.         1  7  1 

1885, 265,  §  2.  exceeding  in  value  fifty  thousand  dollars  as  may  be  necessary 
for  carrying  out  the  objects  connected  with  and  appropriate  to 
the  purposes  of  said  corporation,  and  situated  in  such  place  as 
the  state  board  of  health  may  determine  to  be  suitable  for  said 
objects  and  purposes.  No  building  shall  be  erected,  occupied 
or  used  by  such  corporation  until  the  location  and  plans  thereof, 
with  all  details  of  construction,  have  been  submitted  to  and 
approved  by  said  board  or  some  person  designated  by  it  to 
examine  them. 

5ws  and  rules  Every  such  corporation  may  make  by-laws  and  regula- 

approvaTof16  tions  consistent  with  law  and  subject  to  the  approval  of  said 
1885°  265a§d3  k°ai'd,  f°r  the  reception  and  cremation  of  bodies  of 

deceased  persons,  and  for  the  disposition  of  the  ashes  remain- 
ing therefrom,  and  shall  carry  on  all  its  business  in  accordance 
with  such  regulations  as  said  board  shall  from  time  to  time 
establish  and  furnish  in  writing  to  the  clerk  of  the  corporation, 
and  for  each  violation  of  said  regulations,  it  shall  forfeit  not 
less  than  twenty  nor  more  than  five  hundred  dollars. 
No  body  to  be       152.    No  body  of  a  deceased  person  shall  be  cremated 

c  remated  within  J  1 

4s  hours  after    within  forty-eight  hours  after  decease,  unless  death  was  occa- 

death.   Certih-  J      D  ' 

cate  of  medical  sioned  by  contagious  or  infectious  disease  ;  and  no  body  shall 

examiner  . 

required  in       be  received  or  cremated  by  said  corporation  until  its  officers 

addition  to  . 

usual  certificate,  have  received  the  certificate  or  burial  permit  required  by  law 

Fees  of  medical  ;      ,  _,  . 

examiner.  before  burial,  together  with  a  certificate  from  the  medical 
1885,  26o,  §4.     examiner  0f  the  district  within  which  the  death  occurred,  that 


59 


he  has  viewed  the  body  and  made  personal  inquiry  into  the 
cause  and  manner  of  death,  and  is  of  opinion  that  no  fur- 
ther examination  nor  judicial  inquiry  concerning  the  same  is 
necessary.  For  such  view,  inquiry  and  certificate  he  shall 
receive  the  fees  prescribed  by  section  nine  of  chapter  twenty- 
six  of  the  Public  Statutes  for  a  view  without  an  autopsy  by 
examiners  in  counties  other  than  Suffolk  County.  Medical 
examiners  within  their  respective  districts  shall  make  such  view 
and  inquiry  upon  application  therefor  and  payment  or  tender  of 
said  fees. 


CONTAGIOUS  DISEASES  AMONG  CATTLE. 

153.  The  governor,  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  Cattle  commis- 

•  i  .  -,  .     .  o  sioners  to  be 

council,  shall  appoint  a  board  of  cattle  commissioners  of  not  appointed, 
more  than  three  members,  whose  term  of  office  shall  commence  compensation.' 
on  the  first  day  of  October,  eighteen  hundred  and  eighty-five,  vacancies', 
and  who  shall  hold  office  as  follows  :  —  One  of  said  members  i885,e378. 
for  the  term  of  three  years,  one  for  the  term  of  two  years,  one 
for  the  term  of  one  year,  and  thereafter  one  of  said  members 
shall  be  appointed  annually  for  the  term  of  three  years.  The 
compensation  of  such  commissioners  shall  not  exceed  five  dol- 
lars per  clay  for  actual  service,  in  addition  to  their  travelling 
expenses  necessarily  incurred.    Any  member  of  the  board  may 
be  removed  by  the  governor  and  council,  and  they  may  termi- 
nate the  commissions  of  the  entire  board  when  in  their  judg- 
ment the  public  safety  may  permit.    Vacancies  in  the  board  by 
the  expirations  of  the  terms  of  service  or  otherwise  shall  from 
time  to  time  be  filled  by  appointment  by  the  governor  with  the 
consent  of  the  council. 

154.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  cattle  commissioners  to  commissioners 
make  inquiries  and  gather  facts  and  statistics  in  relation  to  the  Ju?rieT  relative 
prevalence  among  the  neat  stock  of  this  state,  of  the  disease  neat^tock! m 
known  as  abortion,  the  annual  losses  caused  thereby,  and  its  1884' 232' §  lm 
effect  on  the  healthfulness  of  milk  as  an  article  of  food. 

155.  To  ascertain  the  real  character  of  the  disease,  its    may  make  ex- 
cause,  and  the  best  methods  of  its  cure  or  prevention,  the  com-  Sercile  other 
missioners  may  make  or  cause  to  be  made  experiments,  investi-  K,6^,  §  2. 
gations  and  examinations,  and  for  this  purpose  shall  have  and 

exercise  all  the  powers  conferred  upon  them  in  cases  of  con- 
tagious disease  by  the  provisions  of  section  fourteen  of  chapter 
ninety  of  the  Public  Statutes. 


60 


Commissioners 
may  kill  sick 
anim  als. 
1884,  232,  §  3. 


Appropriation. 
1884,  232,  §  4. 


Boards  of 
health  to  cause 
infected  ani- 
mals to  be 
quarantined. 


Expense  to  be 
paid  by  cities 
and  towns 
1887,  252,  §  1. 


Boards  of 
Ilea  1th 

may  prohibit 
departure  of 
animals  and  ap- 
point agents  to 
enforce  regula- 
tions. 

1887,  252,  §  2. 

may  make 
regulations, 
arrest  and 
detain  animals, 
etc. 

1S87,  252,  §  3. 


Regulations  to 
be  recorded  and 
published. 
1887,  252,  §  4. 


156.  The  commissioners  for  the  purpose  of  aiding  them  in 
their  investigations  may  kill  any  animal  affected  with  said  dis- 
ease, and  such  animal  shall  be  paid  for  as  provided  in  section 
seventeen  of  chapter  ninety  of  the  Public  Statutes.  Said  com- 
missioners shall  make  a  detailed  statement  in  their  annual 
report  of  their  doings  under  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

157.  There  shall  be  allowed  and  paid  out  of  the  treasury  a 
sum  not  exceeding  two  thousand  dollars,  to  be  expended  as 
may  be  necessary  in  carrying  out  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

158.  The  boards  of  health  of  cities  and  towns,  in  case  of 
the  existence  in  this  Commonwealth  of  the  disease  called  pleuro- 
pneumonia among  cattle,  or  farcy  or  glanders  among  horses,  or 
any  other  contagious  or  infectious  disease  among  domestic 
animals,  shall  cause  the  animals  which  are  infected,  or  which 
have  been  exposed  to  infection  in  their  respective  cities  and 
towns,  to  be  secured  or  collected  in  some  suitable  place  or 
places  within  their  cities  or  towns,  and  kept  isolated ;  and  when 
taken  from  the  premises  or  possession  of  their  owners,  the 
expense  of  their  maintenance  shall  be  paid  by  the  city  or  town 
wherein  the  animal  is  kept,  and  four-fifths  of  such  payment, 
when  certified  by  the  treasurer  of  such  city  or  town,  shall  be 
refunded  by  the  Commonwealth ;  such  isolation  to  continue  as 
long  as  the  existence  of  such  disease  or  other  circumstances 
may  render  it  necessary. 

159.  They  may,  within  their  respective  cities  and  towns, 
prohibit  the  departure  of  animals  from  any  inclosure  or  exclude 
animals  therefrom,  and  may  appoint  agents  who  shall  have 
power  to  enforce  the  prohibitions  and  regulations  for  which 
provision  is  made  in  sections  three  and  four  of  this  act. 

160.  They  may  make  regulations  in  writing  to  regulate  or 
prohibit  the  passage  from,  to  or  through  their  respective  cities 
or  towns,  or  from  place  to  place  within  the  same,  of  any  cattle 
or  other  domestic  animals,  and  may  arrest  and  detain  *at  the 
cost  of  the  owners  thereof  all  animals  found  passing  in  violation 
of  such  regulations  ;  and  may  take  all  other  necessary  measures 
for  the  enforcement  of  such  prohibition,  and  also  for  prevent- 
ing the  spread  of  any  disease  among  the  animals  of  their 
respective  cities  and  towns  and  the  immediate  vicinity  thereof. 

161.  Such  regulations  shall  be  recorded  upon  the  records  of 
their  cities  and  towns  respectively,  and  shall  be  published  in 
such  cities  and  towns  in  such  manner  as  may  be  provided  in 
such  regulations. 


(31 


162.  Any  person  disobeying  the  orders  of  the  boards  of  Penalty  for 

"    A  r     °  disobedience. 

health,  made  in  conformity  with  section  three,  or  driving  or  1887,252,  §5. 
transporting  any  animals  contrary  to  the  regulations  made, 
published  and  recorded  as  aforesaid,  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine 
not  exceeding  five  hundred  dollars,  or  by  imprisonment  not 
exceeding  one  year. 

163.  Whoever  has  knowledge  of,  or  has  good  reason  to  sus-  Notice  to  be 
pect  the  existence  of  a  contagious  disease  among  any  species  of  ^health aTto 
domestic  animals  in  this  state,  whether  such  knowledge  is  JS8ed 
obtained  by  personal  examination  or  otherwise,  shall  forthwith 

give  notice  thereof  to  the  board  of  health  of  the  city  or  town 
where  such  diseased  animals  are  kept ;  and  for  failure  so  to  do  Penalty, 
shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  not  exceeding  five  hundred  dollars,  1887' 25.2' §  6* 
or  by  imprisonment  in  jail  not  exceeding  one  year. 

164.  The   board   of   health  of   a  city  or  town,  having  Board  of  health 

,       ,.         -  ,    ,  m         .      •  \.  to  examine  do- 

received  notice  or  a  suspected  case  or  contagious  disease  among  mestic  animals' 
any  of  the  domestic  animals  in  their  city  or  town,  shall  forth-  i88°7° 252* C§i. 
with  make  an  examination  thereof  personally,  or  by  a  com- 
petent person  appointed  by  them  for  that  purpose,  and  if  satis- 
fied there  are  good  reasons  for  believing  that  contagion  is 
present,  shall  immediately  inform  the  cattle  commissioners. 

165.  A  city  or  town  whose  officers  refuse  or  neglect  to  carry  Penalty  for  re- 
into  effect  the  provisions  of  the  first  four  and  the  seventh  sec-  1887J  252° §S8.eCt' 
tions  of  this  act,  shall  forfeit  a  sum  not  exceeding  five  hundred 

dollars  for  each  day's  neglect. 

166.  The  boards  of  health  of  cities  and  towns,  when  in  Boards  of  health 
their  judgment  it  is  necessary  to  carry  into  effect  the  provisions  anYesSate*1, 
of  this  chapter,  may  within  their  respective  cities  and  towns  ?2Srf8a'c£!d 
take  and  hold,  for  a  term  not  exceeding  one  year,  any  land,  ESp.tlon  °f 
without  buildings  other  than  barns  thereon,  upon  which  to 

enclose  and  isolate  any  animals  ;  and  they  shall  cause  the  dam- 
age sustained  by  the  owner  in  consequence  of  such  taking  and 
holding  to  be  appraised  by  the  assessors  of  the  city  or  town 
wherein  the  lands  so  taken  are  situated  ;  and  they  shall  further 
cause  a  description  of  such  land,  setting  forth  the  boundaries 
thereof,  and  the  area  as  nearly  as  may  be  estimated,  together 
with  the  said  appraisal,  to  be  entered  on  the  records  of  the  city 
or  town.  The  amount  of  said  appraisement  shall  be  paid  as  Expenses,  how 
provided  in  section  one,  in  such  sums  and  at  such  times  as  the  paid' 
board  of  health  may  order.  If  the  owner  of  land  so  taken  is 
dissatisfied  with  said  appraisement  he  may  by  action  of  contract 


G2 


Owner  may  re- 
cover by  action 
if  dissatisfied. 
1887,  252,  §  9. 


Regulations  of 
cattle  commis- 
sioners to  super- 
sede those  of 
boards  of 
health. 

1887,  252,  §  10. 


Commissioners 
to  have  the 
power  and 
authority  of 
boards  of 
health,  and  may 
establish  hos- 
pitals and  quar- 
antines, and 
may  direct 
boards  of 
health . 


Penalty. 
1887,  252,  §  11. 


Commissioners 
may  cause  in- 
fected animals 
to  be  killed  and 
buried,  and  may 
have  an  ap- 
praisal made. 
1887,  252,  §  12. 


may  cause  cer- 
tain animals  to 
be  killed  with- 
out appraisal. 


recover  of  the  city  or  town  wherein  the  lands  lie  a  fair  compen- 
sation for  the  damages  sustained  by  him,  but  no  costs  shall  be 
taxed  unless  the  damages  recovered  in  such  action,  exclusive  of 
interest,  exceed  said  appraisement.  And  the  Commonwealth 
shall  reimburse  to  the  city  or  town  four-fifths  of  any  sum 
recovered  of  it  in  any  such  action. 

167.  When  a  board  of  cattle  commissioners,  appointed  in 
accordance  with  the  provisions  of  chapter  three  hundred  and 
seventy-eight  of  the  acts  of  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and 
eighty-five,  is  in  existence,  and  makes  and  publishes  any  regu- 
lations concerning  the  extirpation,  cure  or  treatment  of  animals 
infected  with,  or  which  have  been  exposed  to  any  contagious 
disease,  such  regulations  shall  supersede  those  made  by  boards 
of  health,  and  boards  of  health  shall  carry  out  and  enforce  all 
orders  and  directions  of  said  commissioners  to  them  directed. 

168.  Said  commissioners  shall  have  all  the  power  and 
authority  herein  conferred  upon  boards  of  health,  and  in  addi. 
tion  may  establish  hospitals  or  quarantines  with  proper  accom_ 
modations  wherein,  under  prescribed  regulations,  animals  by 
them  selected  may  be  confined  and  treated,  for  the  purpose  of 
determining  the  varying  characteristics  of  and  the  methods  by 
which  a  specific  contagion  may  be  disseminated  or  destroyed ; 
and  they  may  direct  boards  of  health  to  enforce  and  carry  into 
effect  all  such  regulations  as  may  from  time  to  time  be  made 
for  that  end.  And  any  such  officer  who  refuses  or  neglects  to 
carry  out  any  such  regulation  of  the  commissioners,  shall  be 
punished  by  a  fine  not  exceeding  five  hundred  dollars  for  every 
such  offence. 

169.  The  commissioners,  when  in  their  judgment  the  cir- 
cumstances of  the  case  and  the  public  good  require  it,  may 
cause  to  be  killed  and  buried  any  domestic  animals  which  are 
infected  with  or  have  been  exposed  to  contagious  disease  ;  and 
except  as  is  provided  in  the  following  section  shall  cause  such 
animals  to  be  appraised  by  three  competent,  disinterested  men, 
under  oath,  at  the  fair  value  thereof  in  their  condition  at  the 
time  of  appraisement,  and  the  amount  of  the  appraisement  and 
necessary  expense  of  the  same  shall  be  paid  as  provided  in  sec- 
tion one. 

170.  When  the  commissioners,  by  an  examination  of  a  case 
of  contagious  disease  among  domestic  animals,  become  satisfied 
that  it  has  been  contracted  by  intention  or  negligence  on  the 


63 


part  of  the  owner,  or  of  a  person  in  his  employ,  or  by  his  con- 
sent, or  by  the  use  of  food  material  liable  to  contain  the  germs 
of  contagion,  they  shall  cause  such  animals  to  be  securely 
isolated  at  the  expense  of  the  owner,  or  they  shall  cause  them 
to  be  killed  without  appraisal  or  payment ;  and  in  all  cases  of  F,arcy or 

1  x  r   J  glanders. 

farcy  or  glanders,  the  commissioners  having  condemned  the  1887>  252>  § 13- 
animal  infected  therewith,  shall  cause  such  animal  to  be  killed 
without  an  appraisal,  but  may  pay  the  owner  or  any  other  per- 
son an  equitable  sum  for  the  killing  and  burial  thereof. 

171.  A  person  who  fails  to  comply  with  a  regulation  made  Penalty  for  non- 

.  ..  .itt  e  ,i    •  compliance. 

or  an  order  given  by  the  commissioners  in  the  discharge  of  their  1887, 252,  §  u. 
duty,  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  not  exceeding  five  hundred 
dollars,  or  by  imprisonment  not  exceeding  one  year. 

172.  Prosecutions  under  the  preceding  section  may  be  main-  Prosecutions 

j    .      i  .  .  may  be  main- 

tained in  any  COUnty.  tained  in  any 

173.  All  appraisements  under  this  chapter  shall  be  in  writing  1887°  J52,  §  15. 
and  signed  by  the  appraisers  and  certified  by  the  boards  of  Appraisements 

0  J  rr  J  io  be  in  writing 

health  or  commissioners,  respectively,  to  the  treasurers  of  the  {J^"^^^ 
cities  and  towns  where  the  animals  are  kept,  and  forwarded  to 
the  auditor  of  the  Commonwealth. 

174.  The  commissioners  may  examine  under  oath  all  per-  Commissioners 
sons  believed  to  possess  knowledge  of  material  facts  concerning  wftneie^IInder 
the  existence  or  dissemination  or  danger  of  dissemination  of  hlv^^powers 
contagious  disease  among  domestic  animals  ;  and  for  this  pur-  JeaceJ1068  °f 
pose  shall  have  all  the  powers  vested  in  justices  of  the  peace  to  paid?'  ^ow 
take  depositions,  and  to  compel  witnesses 'to  attend  and  testify  1887> 252»  §  17- 
by  chapter  one  hundred  and  sixty-nine  of  the  Public  Statutes. 

All  costs  and  expenses  incurred  in  procuring  the  attendance  of 
such  witnesses  shall  be  allowed  and  paid  to  the  commissioners 
from  the  treasury  of  the  Commonwealth  upon  being  certified  to 
and  approved  by  the  state  auditor. 

175.  When  animals  exposed   to   contagious  diseases  are  Carcasses  may 
killed  by  order  of  the  commissioners,  their  carcasses  may  be  and^Sffor 
inspected  by  the  commissioners  or  a  competent,  discreet  person  disease, 
appointed  by  them,  and  if  they  are  found  entirely  free  of  dis-  SeXofsa^0' 
ease  and  in  a  wholesome  condition  for  food,  they  may  be  sold  1887' 252' §  18- 
by  them  or  by  their  order,  and  the  proceeds  of  the  sales  shall 

be  applied  in  payment  of  the  appraised  value  of  said  animals. 

176.  Cattle  commissioners  now  or  hereafter  appointed  shall  Commissioners 

1  rn  t     *         -     -1   •  -1  to  keep  a  record 

keep  a  tull  record  or  their  doings,  and  report  the  same  to  the  and  report  to 
legislature  on  or  before  the  tenth  day  of  January  in  each  year  le§Islature' 


64 


1887, 252,  §  19.  unless  sooner  required  by  the  governor  ;  and  an  abstract  of  the 
same  shall  be  printed  in  the  annual  report  of  the  state  board  of 
agriculture. 

Certain  animals     177.    When  animals  are  transported  within  this  state  from 

may  be  seized  1 

and  quaran-      infected  localities  beyond  its  boundary  lines,  such  animals  may 

tined  at  expense  *  J  J  '  J 

knicTif1*' and  ^e  se*ze(*  an(^  quarantined  by  the  commissioners,  at  the  expense 
necessary.  ^     of  the  owners  thereof,  so  long  as  the  public  safety  may  require  ; 

and  if,  in  their  judgment,  it  is  necessary  to  secure  that  safety 
they  may  cause  such  animals  to  be  killed  without  appraisal  or 
payment  for  the  same. 
Certain  cattle        178.    No  Texan,  Mexican,  Cherokee,  Indian  or  other  cattle, 

not  to  be  driven  7  7 

on  streets,  or     which  the  cattle  commissioners  decide  may  spread  contagious 

outside  of  stock-  d     1  0 

yards.  disease  shall  be  driven  on  the  streets  of  any  city,  town  or  village, 

1887,  252,  §  21.  & 

or  on  any  road  in  this  Commonwealth,  nor  shall  they  be  driven 
outside  the  stockyards  connected  with  any  railway  in  this  Com- 
monwealth, between  the  first  day  of  March  and  the  first  day  of 
November. 

Certain  cattle  to     179.    In  all  stockyards  within   this   Commonwealth  said 

be  separated  in  ^ 

pens,  when.      Texan,  Mexican,  Cherokee,  Indian  or  other  cattle,  which  the 

1887,  252, §  22.  '  '  '  ' 

cattle  commissioners  decide  may  spread  contagious  disease, 
shall  be  kept  in  different  pens  from  those  in  which  other  cattle 
are  kept,  from  the  first  day  of  March  until  the  first  day  of 
November. 

Penalty  for  180.    Any  person  or  persons  violating  any  provision  of  the 

1887, 252,  §  23.    two  preceding  sections  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  of  not  less 

than  twenty  nor  more  than  one  hundred  dollars. 
Chapter  90,  p.     181.    Chapter  ninety  of  the  Public  Statutes  and  chapter  one 
Aet^o^isTsfre!  hundred  and  forty-eight  of  the  acts  of  the  year  eighteen  hundred 
i88a7,e252,  §  24.    and  eighty-five  are  hereby  repealed :  provided,  that  nothing 

herein  contained  shall  affect  any  prosecution  pending,  or  any 

penalty  incurred  before  this  act  takes  effect. 
Governor  182.    That  the  governor  is  hereby  authorized  to  accept  on 

authorized  to  0  J  L 

accept  united    behalf  of  the  state  the  rules  and  regulations  prepared  by  the 

States  rules  and  0  l     l  j 

regulations.      commissioner  of  agriculture,  under  and  in  pursuance  of  section 

Sheriffs  and  &  '  1 

others  to  assist  three  of  an  act  of  congress  approved  on  the  twenty-ninth  day 
of  May  in  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and  eighty-four,  estab- 
lishing the  bureau  of  animal  industry ;  and  it  is  hereby  made 
the  duty  of  sheriffs,  constables  and  peace  officers  to  assist  said 

inspectors  to     inspectors  when  so  requested ;  and  said  inspectors  shall  have 

ers  and  protec-   the  same  powers  and  protection  as  peace  officers  while  engaged 

officers?0^6     in  the  discharge  of  their  duties. 

1887,  250,  §  1. 


65 


183.  All  expenses  of  quarantine,  condemnation  of  animals  Expenses  to  be 

paid  by  the 

exposed  to  disease  and  the  expenses  of  any  and  all  measures  United  states, 
that  may  be  used  to  suppress  and  extirpate  pi  euro-pneumonia  188''2o0'§3- 
shall  be  paid  by  the  United  States,  and  in  no  case  shall  this 
state  be  liable  for  any  damages  or  expenses  of  any  kind  under 
the  provisions  of  this  act. 

MEDICAL  SOCIETIES  ;    DEGREES  OR  DIPLOMAS. 

184.  No  corporation  organized  for  medical  purposes  under  Medical  socie- 
the  provisions  of  chapter  one  hundred  and  fifteen  of  the  Public  fer  degrees 
Statutes  shall  confer  degrees,  or  issue  diplomas  or  certificates  Kid"/ i^Sa, 
conferring  or  purporting  to  confer  degrees,  unless  specially  SS,"  268,  §  l. 
authorized  by  the  legislature  so  to  do. 

185.  An  officer,  agent  or  servant  of  any  corporation  men-  Penalty  for  vio- 

&  *       •        a  lationofact. 

tioned  in  section  one,  or  any  other  person  conferring  degrees,  1883,  268,  §2. 
or  signing,  issuing  or  authorizing  the  signing  or  issuing  of  any 
diploma  or  certificate  purporting  to  confer  any  degree  of  medi- 
cine or  surgery,  contrary  to  the  provisions  of  this  act,  shall  be 
punished  by  fine  of  not  less  than  five  hundred  dollars,  nor  more 
than  one  thousand  dollars. 


COLOR-BLINDNESS  AND  DEFECTIVE  SIGHT. 

186.    No  railroad  corporation  shall  employ  or  keep  in  its  Railroad  em- 
employment,  in  a  position  which  requires  the  person  employed  examined  rela- 
therein  to  distinguish  form  or  color  signals,  any  person,  unless  biindne^and 
he  has  been  examined  for  color-blindness  or  other  defective  R^iiVsfrre. 
sight  by  some  competent  person  employed  by  the  corporation  1883' 125' 
and  has  received  a  certificate  that  he  is  not  disqualified  for  such 
position  by  color-blindness  or  other  defective  sight.   A  railroad 
corporation  shall  forfeit  one  hundred  dollars  for  each  violation 
of  the  provisions  of  this  section. 


INSTRUCTION    IN  PHYSIOLOGY   AND  HYGIENE  ;  ALCOHOL, 
STIMULANTS   AND  NARCOTICS. 

187.    Physiology  and  hygiene,  which,  in  both  divisions  of  Physiology  and 

J  V5*7  ^  '  hygiene  to  be 

the  subject,  shall  include  special  instruction  as  to  the  effects  of  taught  in  public 

1  schools,  mclud- 

alcoholic  drinks,  stimulants  and  narcotics  on  the  human  svstem,  ing  special  in- 

struction  as  to 

shall  be  taught  as  a  regular  branch  of  study  to  all  pupils  in  all  effects  of  aico- 
schools  supported  wholly  or  in  part  by  public  money,  except  1885,  332. 
special  schools  maintained  solely  for  instruction  in  particular 
branches,  such  as  drawing,  mechanics,  art,  and  like  studies. 


66 


All  acts  or  parts  of  acts  relating  to  the  qualifications  of  teach- 
ers in  the  public  schools  shall  apply  to  the  branch  of  study  pre- 
scribed in  this  act. 


Governor  to 
appoint  inspect- 
ors of  factories 
and  public 
buildings. 
P.  S.,  103,  §  9. 


Factories  to  be 
kept  clean  and 
provided  with 
sanitary  meas- 
ures. 

1838,  305,  §  1. 
(This  and  the 
following  sec- 
tions were 
enacted  to 
amend  sections 
1  and  2  of 
chapter  103  of 
the  Acts  of 
1887.) 


Owner  or 
occupant  to 
make  proper 
changes. 
Action  to  re- 
cover expenses, 
how  made. 
1888,  305,  §  2. 


Inspectors  of 
fartories  to 
notify  boards  of 
health,  of  sani- 
tary defects,  etc. 
1887,  103,  §  3. 


SANITARY    PROVISIONS    IN    FACTORIES    AND    WORKSHOPS,  SCHOOL- 
HOUSES  AND  OTHER  PUBLIC  BUILDINGS. 

188.  The  governor  shall  appoint  two  or  more  of  the  district 
police  to  act  as  inspectors  of  factories  and  public  buildings. 
In  a  district  where  a  district  police  officer  is  appointed  to  act 
as  such  inspector,  the  governor  may  appoint  an  additional  dis- 
trict police  officer  ;  but  the  whole  district  police  force  shall  not 
exceed  sixteen  men. 

189.  Every  factory  in  which  five  or  more  persons  are 
employed,  and  every  factory,  workshop,  mercantile  or  other 
establishment  or  office  in  which  two  or  more  children,  young 
persons  or  women  are  employed,  shall  be  kept  in  a  cleanly  state 
and  free  from  effluvia  arising  from  any  drain,  privy  or  other 
nuisance,  and  shall  be  provided,  within  reasonable  access,  with 
a  sufficient  number  of  proper  water-closets,  earth-closets  or 
privies  for  the  reasonable  use  of  the  persons  employed  therein  ; 
and  wherever  two  or  more  male  persons  and  two  or  more  female 
persons  are  employed  as  aforesaid  together,  a  sufficient  number 
of  separate  and  distinct  water-closets,  earth-closets,  or  privies 
shall  be  provided  for  the  use  of  each  sex  and  plainly  so  desig- 
nated, and  no  person  shall  be  allowed  to  use  any  such  closet  or 
privy  assigned  to  persons  of  the  other  sex. 

190.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  every  owner,  lessee  or  occupant 
of  any  premises  so  used  as  to  come  within  the  provisions  of  this 
act  to  carry  out  the  same  and  to  make  the  changes  necessary 
therefor.  In  case  such  changes  are  made  upon  the  order  of  an 
inspector  of  factories  by  the  occupant  or  lessee  of  the  premises 
he  may  at  any  time  within  thirty  days  of  the  completion  thereof 
bring  an  action  before  any  trial  justice,  police,  municipal  or 
district  court  against  any  other  person  having  an  interest  in 
such  premises,  and  may  recover  such  proportion  of  the  expense 
of  making  such  changes  as  the  court  adjudges  should  justly  and 
equitably  be  borne  by  such  defendant. 

191.  When  it  appears  to  an  inspector  of  factories  that  any 
act,  neglect  or  default  in  relation  to  any  drain,  water-closet, 
earth-closet,  privy,  ash-pit,  water-supply,  nuisance  or  other 
matter  in  a  factory  or  in  a  workshop,  included  under  section 


67 


one  of  this  act,  is  punishable  or  remediable  under  chapter  eighty 
of  the  Public  Statutes,  or  under  any  law  of  the  Commonwealth 
relating  to  the  preservation  of  the  public  health,  but  not  under 
this  act,  such  inspector  shall  give  notice  in  writing  of  such  act, 
neglect  or  default  to  the  board  of  health  of  the  city  or  town 
within  which  such  factory  or  workshop  is  situate,  and  it  shall 
thereupon  be  the  duty  of  such  board  of  health  to  make  enquiry 
into  the  subject  of  the  notice,  and  to  take  such  action  thereon 
in  the  way  of  enforcing  any  provision  of  law  within  its  authority 
as  the  facts  may  call  for. 

192.  Any  person  violating  any  provision  of  sections  one  and  ^fon' y  Four*0" 
two  of  chapter  103  of  the  acts  of  1887  shall  be  punished  by  fine  weeks' notice 

1  required. 

not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars  ;  but  no  criminal  prosecution  1887, 103,  §  4. 
shall  be  made  for  such  violation  until  four  weeks  after  notice  in 
writing  by  an  inspector  of  factories  of  the  changes  necessary  to 
be  made  to  comply  with  the  provisions  of  said  sections  has  been 
sent  by  mail  or  delivered  to  such  person,  nor  then  if  in  the 
mean  time  such  changes  have  been  made  in  accordance  with 
such  notification.  A  notice  shall  be  deemed  a  sufficient  notice 
under  this  section  to  all  the  members  of  a  firm  or  to  a  corpora- 
tion, when  given  to  one  member  of  such  firm,  or  to  the  clerk, 
cashier,  secretary,  agent  or  any  other  officer  having  charge  of 
the  business  of  such  corporation  or  to  its  attorney ;  and  in  the 
case  of  a  foreign  corporation  notice  to  the  officer  having  the 
charge  of  such  factory  or  workshop  shall  be  sufficient ;  and 
such  officer  shall  be  personally  liable  for  the  amount  of  any  fine 
in  case  a  judgment  against  the  corporation  is  returned  unsatis- 
fied. 

193.  The  following  expressions  used  in  this  act  shall  have  Definition  of 

»  ii  •  terras  employed 

the  following  meanings  :  —  in  the  act; 

The  expression  "person"  means  any  individual,  corpora-  1887'103'55' 
tion,  partnership,  company  or  association. 

The  expression  "  child  "  means  a  person  under  the  age  of 
fourteen  years. 

The  expression  "young  person"  means  a  person  of  the  age 
of  fourteen  years  and  under  the  age  of  eighteen  years. 

The  expression  "  woman"  means  a  woman  of  eighteen  years 
of  age  and  upwards. 

The  expression  "factory"  means  any  premises  where  steam, 
water  or  other  mechanical  power  is  used  in  aid  of  any  manufact- 
uring process  there  carried  on. 


68 


The  expression  "workshop"  means  any  premises,  room  or 
place,  not  being  a  factory  as  above  defined,  wherein  any  manual 
labor  is/exercised  by  way  of  trade  or  for  purposes  of  gain  in  or 
incidental  to  any  process  of  making,  altering,  repairing,  orna- 
menting, finishing  or  adapting  for  sale  any  article  or  part  of  an 
article,  and  to  which  or  over  which  premises,  room  or  place  the 
employer  of  the  persons  working  therein  has  the  right  of  access 
or  control :  provided,  however,  that  the  exercise  of  such  manual 
labor  in  a  private  house  or  private  room  by  the  family  dwelling 
therein,  or  by  any  of  them,  or  in  case  a  majority  of  the  persons 
therein  employed  are  members  of  such  family,  shall  not  of  itself 
constitute  such  house  or  room  a  workshop  within  this  definition. 

The  aforesaid  expressions  shall  have  the  meanings  above 
defined  for  them  respectively  in  all  laws  of  this  Commonwealth 
relating  to  the  employment  of  labor,  whether  heretofore  or 
hereafter  enacted,  unless  a  different  meaning  is  plainly  required 
by  the  context. 

Factories  to  be      194.    Every   factory   in  which  five  or  more  persons  are 

properly  venti-  ■/  •/  i 

i88-d'i73  §1  employed,  and  every  workshop  in  which  children,  young  per- 
sons or  women,  five  or  more  in  number,  are  employed,  shall  be 
so  ventilated  while  work  is  carried  on  therein  that  the  air  shall 
not  become  so  exhausted  as  to  be  injurious  to  the  health  of  the 
persons  employed  therein,  and  shall  also  be  so  ventilated  as  to 
render  harmless,  so  far  as  is  practicable,  all  the  gases,  vapors, 
dust  or  other  impurities  generated  in  the  course  of  the  manu- 
facturing process  or  handicraft  carried  on  therein  that  may  be 
injurious  to  health. 

Mechanical  195.    jf  [n  a  factory  or  workshop  included  in  section  one  of 

ventilation  to  be  J  L 

required  where  this  act  any  process  is  carried  on  by  which  dust  is  generated 

dusty  processes  J  1  J  0 

are^c'onducted.    and  inhaled  to  an  injurious  extent  by  the  persons  employed 
therein,  and  it  appears  to  an  inspector  of  factories  that  such 
inhalation  could  be  to  a  great  extent  prevented  by  the  use  of  a 
fan  or  other  mechanical  means,  and  that  the  same  could  be  pro- 
vided without  excessive  expense,  such  inspector  may  direct  a 
fan  or  other  mechanical  means  of  a  proper  construction  to  be 
provided  within  a  reasonable  time,  and  such  fan  or  other 
mechanical  means  shall  be  so  provided,  maintained  and  used. 
Penalty  for  vio-      196.    Any  person  employing  labor  in  a  factory  or  workshop 
weeks'  notice     and  violating  any  provision  of  this  act  shall  be  punished  by  fine 
1887,' 183,'  §  3.     not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars  ;  but  no  criminal  prosecution 
shall  be  made  for  any  such  violation  unless  such  employer  shall 


69 


have  neglected  for  four  weeks  to  make  such  changes  in  his  fac- 
tory or  workshop  as  shall  have  been  ordered  by  an  inspector  of 
factories  by  a  notice  in  writing  delivered  to  or  received  by  sucli/ 
employer. 

197.  Every  public  building  and  every  schoolhouse  shall  be  Public  buildings 

J  1  °  ...  and  school- 

kept  in  a  cleanly  state  and  free  from  effluvia  arising  from  any  houses  to  have 

drain,  privy  or  other  nuisance,  and  shall  be  provided  with  a  provfsittns.1  ary 

1888  149  §  1 

sufficient  number  of  proper  water  closets,  earth  closets,  or 
privies  for  the  reasonable  use  of  the  persons  admitted  to  such 
public  building  or  of  the  pupils  attending  such  schoolhouse. 

198.  Every  public  building  and  every  schoolhouse  shall  be  Public  buildings 

and  school- 
ventilated  in  such  a  proper  manner  that  the  air  shall  not  become  houses  to  be 

properly  veuti- 

so  exhausted  as  to  be  miunous  to  the  health  of  the  persons  lated. 

1888  149  5  2 

present  therein.  The  provisions  of  this  section  and  the  pre- 
ceding section  shall  be  enforced  by  the  inspection  department 
of  the  district  police  force. 

199.  Whenever  it  shall  appear  to  an  inspector  of  factories  inspectors  to 
and  public  buildings  that  further  or  different  sanitary  pro-  directing  the 

.      -|    .  provisions  of 

visions  or  means  or  ventilation  are  required  in  any  public  sanitary  meas- 
builcling  or  schoolhouse  in  order  to  conform  to  the  requirements  lsis,'  M9,  §  3. 
of  this  act,  and  that  the  same  can  be  provided  without  incurring 
unreasonable  expense,  such  inspector  may  issue  a  written  order 
to  the  proper  person  or  authority  directing  such  sanitary  pro- 
visions or  means  of  ventilation  to  be  provided,  and  they  shall 
thereupon  be  provided  in  accordance  with  such  order  by  the 
public  authority,  corporation  or  person  having  charge  of,  own- 
ing or  leasing  such  public  building  or  schoolhouse. 

200.  Any  school  committee,  public  officer,  corporation  or  Penalty  for 
person  neglecting  for  four  weeks  after  the  receipt  of  an  order  IsssTiS,"  §  4. 
from  an  inspector,  as  provided  in  the  preceding  section,  to  pro- 
vide the  sanitary  provisions  or  means  of  ventilation  required 
thereby  shall  be  punished  by  fine  not  exceeding  one  hundred 
dollars. 

201.  The  expression  "public  building"  used  in  this  act  Definition  of 

•  i  t  •  i  11*  terms  used  in 

means  any  building  or  premises  used  as  a  place  of  public  enter-  the  act. 

.  7  ,  ,  mi  •      1888»  149»  § 5- 

tamment,  instruction,  resort  or  assemblage,    lne  expression 

"schoolhouse"  means  any  building  or  premises  in  which  pub- 
lic or  private  instruction  is  afforded  to  not  less  than  ten  pupils 
at  one  time. 


70 


GENERAL  LAWS 


RELATIVE  TO 


ADULTERATION, 


Adulteration 
prohibited. 
1882,  263,  §  1. 


Definition  of 
terras  "  drugs  " 
and  "  food." 
1882,  263,  §  2. 


Drugs,  how 
adulterated. 
1882,  263,  §  3. 


Officinal  drugs 
may  be  sold  as 
called  for,  or  as 
variation  is 
made  known  to 
the  purchaser. 
1884,  289,  §  7. 


Food,  how 
adulterated. 


FOOD  AND  DRUGS. 

1.  No  person  shall,  within  this  Commonwealth,  manufacture 
for  sale,  offer  for  sale,  or  sell  any  drug  or  article  of  food  which 
is  adulterated  within  the  meaning  of  this  act. 

2.  The  term  "drug"  as  used  in  this  act  shall  include  all 
medicines  for  internal  or  external  use,  antiseptics,  disinfectants 
and  cosmetics.  The  term  "  food"  as  used  herein  shall  include 
confectionery,  condiments  and  all  articles  used  for  food  or 
drink  by  man. 

3.  An  article  shall  be  deemed  to  be  adulterated  within  the 
meaning  of  this  act,  — 

(a.)  In  the  case  of  drugs,  — (1.)  If,  when  sold  under  or 
by  a  name  recognized  by  the  United  States  Pharmacopoeia,  it 
differs  from  the  standard  of  strength,  quality  or  purity  laid 
down  therein,  unless  the  order  calls  for  an  article  inferior  to 
such  standard,  or  unless  such  difference  is  made  known  or  so 
appears  to  the  purchaser  at  the  time  of  such  sale  ;  (2.)  If,  when 
sold  under  or  by  a  name  not  recognized  in  the  United  States 
Pharmacopoeia  but  which  is  found  in  some  other  pharmacopoeia, 
or  other  standard  work  on  materia  medica,  it  differs  materially 
from  the  standard  of  strength,  quality  or  purity  laid  down  in 
such  work;  (3.)  If  its  strength  or  purity  falls  below  the  pro- 
fessed standard  under  which  it  is  sold  : 

(b.)  In  the  case  of  food,  —  (1.)  If  any  substance  or  sub- 
stances have  been  mixed  with  it  so  as  to  reduce,  or  lower,  or 
injuriously  affect  its  quality  or  strength;  (2.)  If  any  inferior 
or  cheaper  substance  or  substances  have  been  substituted  wholly 


71 


or  in  part  for  it;  (3.)  If  any  valuable  constituent  has  been 
wholly  or  in  part  abstracted  from  it ;  (4.)  If  it  is  an  imitation 
of,  or  is  sold  under  the  name  of,  another  article  ;  (5.)  If  it 
consists  wholly  or  in  part  of  a  diseased,  decomposed,  putrid  or 
rotten  animal  or  vegetable  substance,  whether  manufactured  or 
not,  or,  in  the  case  of  milk,  if  it  is  the  produce  of  a  diseased 
animal;  (6  )  If  it  is  colored,  coated,  polished  or  powdered, 
whereby  damage  is  concealed,  or  if  it  is  made  to  appear  better 
or  of  greater  value  than  it  really  is;  (7.)  If  it  contains  any 
added  poisonous  ingredient,  or  any  ingredient  which  may 
render  it  injurious  to  the  health  of  a  person  consuming  it. 

4.  The  provisions  of  this  act  shall  not  apply  to  mixtures  or  provisions  of 
compounds  recognized  as  ordinary  articles  of  food  or  drinks,  to^aweiiedTonJ 
provided  that  the  same  are  not  injurious  to  health,  and  are  tamdwhennot 
distinctly  labelled  as  mixtures  or  compounds.    And  no  prose-  health."8 10 
cutions  shall  at  any  time  be  maintained  under  said  act  concern-  No  prosecution 

J  to  be  made  rela- 

ing  any  drug  the  standard  of  strength  or  purity  whereof  has  tive  to  d.ugs,  if 

°        J  °  &  1         J  standard  of 

been  raised  since  the  issue  of  the  last  edition  of  the  United  same  has  been 

raised  since  the 

States  Pharmacopoeia,  unless  and  until  such  change  of  standard  issue  of  the  last 

edition  of  the 

has  been  published  throughout  the  Commonwealth.  Pharmacopoeia 

5.  The  state  board  of  health  shall  take  cognizance  of  the  change  has  been 
interests  of  the  public  health  relating  to  the  sale  of  drugs  and  isWIsI,  §  5. 
food  and  the  adulteration  of  the  same,  and  shall  make  all  make^nvesSga-1 
necessary  investigations  and  inquiries  in  reference  thereto,  and  appoint  inspect- 
for  these  purposes  may  appoint  inspectors,  analysts  and  chemists,  ^J^* 
who  shall  be  subject  to  its  supervision  and  removal.  1882>  263»  § 5- 

Within  thirty  days  after  the  passage  of  this  act  the  said  The  board  shall 

u         ^  x  c  make  regula- 

board  shall  adopt  such  measures  as  it  may  deem  necessary  tions  as  to  coi- 

1  j  j   lccting  and 

to  facilitate  the  enforcement  hereof,  and  shall  prepare  rules  and  examining 

food  and  drugs, 

regulations  with  regard  to  the  proper  methods  of  collecting  and  and  may  expend 

.    .  ,         .  ,        K  „      ,       «    •  -,  ,  -,  ,  ten  thousand 

examining  drugs  and  articles  of  food.    Said  board  may  expend  dollars  annually 
annually  an  amount  not  exceeding  ten  thousand  dollars  for  the  the%™v?8ions 
purpose  of  carrying  out  the  provisions  of  this  act :  provided,  lsra/SfiM  5. 

18S4  *^89  §  1 

however,  that  not  less  than  three-fifths  of  said  amount  shall  be  Three".fifths  to 
annually  expended  for  the  enforcement  of  the  laws  against  the  JJaSon'to^mUk 
adulteration  of  milk  and  milk  products.  ?88d4U2&r°§dicts" 

6.  Every  person  offering  or  exposing  for  sale,  or  delivering  samples  to  be 
to  a  purchaser,  any  drug  or  article  of  food  included  in  the  pro-  cers  or  agents^" 

1882  263  6  6 

visions  of  this  act,  shall  furnish  to  any  analyst  or  other  officer  see"aiso  llse", 
or  agent  appointed  hereunder,  who  shall  apply  to  him  for  the  318' § 
purpose  and  shall  tender  him  the  value  of  the  same,  a  sample 


72 


sufficient  for  the  purpose  of  the  analysis  of  any  such  drug  or 
article  of  food  which  is  in  his  possession, 
obstruction  and     7.    Whoever  hinders,  obstructs,  or  in  any  way  interferes 

its  penalty.  J  47 

1882, 263,  §  7.  with  any  inspector,  analyst,  or  other  officer  appointed  here- 
under, in  the  performance  of  his  duty,  and  whoever  violates 
any  of  the  provisions  of  this  act,  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine 
not  exceeding  fifty  dollars  for  the  first  offence,  and  not  exceed- 
ing one  hundred  dollars  for  each  subsequent  offence. 

state  board  to       8.    The  state  board  of  health  shall  report  annually  to  the 

report  prosecu-         t  ^ 

tione  and  money  legislature  the  number  of  prosecutions  made  under  chapter  two 

expended. 

1883  ,  2(53,  §  2.     hundred  and  sixty-three  of  the  acts  of  eighteen  hundred  and 

1884,  289,  §  2. 

eighty-two,  and  an  itemized  account  of  all  money  expended  in 
carrying  out  the  provisions  thereof. 
Powers  of  in-        9.    An  inspector  appointed  under  the  provisions  of  said 

spectors.  i  i  i  r 

1884,  289,  §3.  chapter  two  hundred  and  sixty-three  of  the  acts  of  the  year 
eighteen  hundred  and  eighty-two  shall  have  the  same  powers 
and  authority  conferred  upon  a  city  or  town  inspector  by  section 
two  of  chapter  fifty-seven  of  the  Public  Statutes. 

Act  of  1882  does     10.    Nothing  contained  in  chapter  two  hundred  and  sixty- 

not  affect  chap-  , 

ter57of  theP.s.  three  of  the  acts  of  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and  eighty-two 

1884,  289,  §4.  -  J  ^  J 

shall  be  in  any  way  construed  as  repealing  or  amending  any- 
thing contained  in  chapter  fifty-seven  of  the  Public  Statutes. 
Samples  to  be       n.    Before  commencing  the  analysis  of  any  sample  the 

scaled  for  bene-  °  J  J  L 

fit  of  defendant,  person  making  the  same  shall  reserve  a  portion  which  shall  be 

1884,  289,  §  8. 

sealed  ;    and  in  case  of  a  complaint  against  any  person  the 
reserved  portion  of  the  sample  alleged  to  be  adulterated  shall 
upon  application  be  delivered  to  the  defendant  or  his  attorney. 
Selling  corrupt      12.    Whoever  knowingly  sells  any  kind  of  diseased,  cor- 

or  unwholesome  . 

provisions  with-  runted,  or  unwholesome  provisions,  whether  for  meat  or  drink, 

out  notice. 

p.  s.,  c.  208,  §  i.  without  making  the  same  fully  known  to  the  buyer,  shall  be 
punished  by  imprisonment  in  the  jail  not  exceeding  six  months, 
or  by  fine  not  exceeding  two  hundred  dollars. 

The  gist  of  the  offence  under  this  section  consists  in  the  guilty 
knowledge  or  evil  intent  of  a  party  in  selling  what  he  knows  to  be 
unfit  for  food.  The  sale,  of  itself,  is  not  made  criminal;  but  it  is  the 
sale  coupled  with  the  knowledge  of  the  diseased  state  of  the  thing  sold 
which  constitutes  the  offence. 

Commonwealth  v.  Boynton,  12  Cush.  499. 


1784 


Adulterating         13.    Whoever  fraudulently  adulterates,  for  the  purpose  of 

food. 
P.S., 
R.  S. 


p0°s.',  c.208,  §  3.  sale,  bread  or  any  other  substance  intended  for  food,  with 


73 


any  ^substance  injurious  to  health,  or  knowingly  barters,  gives 
away,  sells,  or  has  in  possession  with  intent  to  sell,  any  sub- 
stance intended  for  food,  which  has  been  adulterated  with  any 
substance  injurious  to  health,  shall  be  punished  by  imprison- 
ment in  the  jail  not  exceeding  one  year,  or  by  fine  not  exceed- 
ing three  hundred  dollars  ;  and  the  articles  so  adulterated  shall 
be  forfeited,  and  destroyed  under  the  direction  of  the  court. 

14.  Whoever  adulterates,  for  the  purpose  of   sale,  any  Adulterating 

•  t    -i«  it  •   i    liquor  used  for 

liquor  used  or  intended  for  drink,  with  Indian  cockle,  vitriol,  drink,  with  in- 

_  ,  ,.  ,  .  ,         ,    dian  cockle,  etc. 

grams  of /paradise,  opium,  alum,  capsicum,  copperas,  laurel-  i».s.,  c.208,  §4. 
water,  logwood,  Brazil  wood,  cochineal,  sugar  of  lead,  or  any  R"  "* im' 
other  substance  which  is  poisonous  or  injurious  to  health,  and 
whoever  knowingly  sells  any  such  liquor  so  adulterated,  shall 
be  punished  by  imprisonment  in  the  state  prison  not  exceed- 
ing three  years  ;  and  the  articles  so  adulterated  shall  be  for- 
feited. 

15.  Whoever  fraudulently  adulterates,  for  the  purpose  of  Adulteration  of 

J  1      L  drugs  or  niedi- 

sale,  any  drug  or  medicine,  or  sells  any  fraudulently  adulter-  ping8,208  §5 

ated  drug  or  medicine,  knowing  the  same  to  be  adulterated, 

shall  be  punished  by  imprisonment  in  the  jail  not  exceeding  1853 

one  year,  or  by  fine  not  exceeding  four  hundred  dollars  ;  and 

such  adulterated  drugs  and  medicines  shall  be  forfeited,  and 

destroyed  under  the  direction  of  the  court. 

1G.    Whoever  sells  arsenic  (arsenious  acid),  atropia  or  any  Persons  selling 
of  its  salts,  chloral  hydrate,  chloroform,  cotton  root  and  its  fluid  tokeep?eco°rdi9, 
extract,  corrosive  sublimate,  cyanide  of  potassium,  Donovan's  etc' 
solution,  ergot  and  its  fluid  extract,  Fowler's  solution,  laudanum, 
McMunn's  elixir,  morphia  or  any  of  its  salts,  oil  of  pennyroyal, 
oil  of  savin,  oil  of  tansy,  opium,  Paris  green,  Parsons'  vermin  ex- 
terminator, phosphorus,  prussic  acid,  u  rough  on  rats,"  strychnia 
or  any  of  its  salts,  tartar  emetic,  tincture  of  aconite,  tincture  of 
belladonna,  tincture  of  digitalis,  tincture  of  nux  vomica,  tinct- 
ure of  veratrum  viride,  without  the  written  perscription  of  a 
physician,  shall  keep  a  record  of  such  sale,  the  name  and 
amount  of  the  article  sold,  and  the  name  and  residence  of  the 
person  or  persons  to  whom  it  was  delivered,  which  record  shall 
be  made  before  the  article  is  delivered,  and  shall  at  all  times  be 
open  to  inspection  by  the  officers  of  the  district  police  and  by 
the  police  authorities  and  officers  of  cities  and  towns.    Who-  Penalty  for 
ever  neglects  to  keep  or  refuses  to  show  to  said  officers  such  to°show 
record  shall  be  punished  by  fine  not  exceeding  fifty  dollars.  rec0ld' 


74 


Whoever  sells  any  of  the  poisonous  articles  named  in  this  sec- 
tion, without  the  written  prescription  of  a  physician,  shall 
affix  to  the  bottle,  box  or  wrapper  containing  the  article  sold 
a  label  of  red  paper  upon  which  shall  be  printed  in  large 
black  letters  the  word  —  Poison,  and  also  the  word  —  Anti- 
dote, and  the  name  and  place  of  business  of  the  vendor. 
The  name  of  an  antidote,  if  there  be  any,  for  the  poison 
sold  shall  also  be  upon  the  label.  Every  neglect  to  affix 
such  label  to  such  poisonous  article  before  the  delivery  there- 
of to  the  purchaser  shall  be  punished  by  fine  not  exceeding 
fifty  dollars.  Whoever  purchases  poison  as  aforesaid  and 
gives  a  false  or  fictitious  name  to  the  vendor  shall  be  punished 
by  fine  not  exceeding  fifty  dollars  :  provided,  that  nothing  in 
this  act  shall  be  construed  to  apply  to  wholesale  dealers  and  to 
manufacturing  chemists  in  their  sales  to  the  retail  trade. 


75 


LAWS 


RELATIVE  TO 


SPECIAL  ARTICLES  OF  FOOD. 


[The  older  statutes  relative  to  the  weights  and  measures  of  sundry 
articles,  and  the  local  inspection  of  the  same,  containing  much  material 
pertaining  to  commercial  inspection,  and  irrelevant  to  the  subject  of 
adulteration,  are  omitted  from  this  resume,  with  the  exception  of  the 
statutes  relative  to  milk  and  provisions  and  animals  intended  for 
slaughter.  ] 

OF  THE  INSPECTION  AND  SALE  OF  MILK  AND  MILK  PRODUCTS. 

1.  The  mayor  and  aldermen  of  cities  shall,  and  the  select-  Appointment  of 

J  ,  inspectors  of 

men  of  towns  may,  annually  appoint  one  or  more  persons  to  be  mMc.  ^  ^ 
inspectors  of  milk  for  their  respective  places,  who  shall  be 
sworn  before  entering  upon  the  duties  of  their  office.  Each  1864 
inspector  shall  publish  a  notice  of  his  appointment  for  two 
weeks  in  a  newspaper  published  in  his  city  or  town,  or,  if  no 
newspaper  is  published  therein,  he  shall  post  up  such  notice  in 
two  or  more  public  places  in  such  city  or  town. 

2.  Such  inspectors  shall  keep  an  office,  and  shall  record  in  Their  duties  and 
books  kept  for  the  purpose  the  names  and  places  of  business  of  K,e3i8,  §  i. 
all  persons  engaged  in  the  sale  of  milk  within  their  city  or  town. 
Said  inspectors  may,  with  the  approval  of  the  mayor  or  the 
selectmen,  employ  suitable  persons  to  act  as  collectors  of 
samples,  who  shall  be  sworn  before  entering  upon  their  duties. 
Said  inspectors,  or  the  collectors  employed  and  qualified  as 
aforesaid,  may  enter  all  places  where  milk  is  stored  or  kept  for 
sale,  and  all  carriages  used  for  the  conveyance  of  milk,  and  the 
said  inspectors  or  the  collectors  may  take  samples  for  analysis 
from  all  such  places  or  carriages,  and  at  the  same  time  a  portion 
of  each  sample  so  taken  shall,  if  the  person  taking  the  same  be 


1804 


76 


requested  so  to  do,  be  sealed  and  delivered  to  the  owner  or  person 
from  whose  possession  the  same  is  taken  and  a  receipt  given 
therefor  to  the  person  taking  the  same.  The  inspectors  shall 
cause  the  samples  of  milk  so  taken  to  be  analyzed  or  otherwise 
satisfactorily  tested,  the  results  of  which  analysis  or  test  they 
shall  record  and  preserve  as  evidence.  The  inspectors  shall 
receive  such  compensation  as  the  mayor  and  aldermen  or  select- 
men may  determine. 

Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  2  (statute  of  1864,  chap.  122,  sect. 
2),  so  far  as  it  authorizes  inspectors  of  milk  to  enter  all  carriages  used 
in  the  conveyance  of  milk,  and,  whenever  they  have  reason  to  believe 
any  milk  found  therein  is  adulterated,  to  take  specimens  thereof  for 
the  purpose  of  analyzing  or  otherwise  satisfactorily  testing  the  same, 
is  constitutional. 

Commonwealth  v.  Carter,  132  Mass.  12. 

Under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  2,  as  amended  by  the  Statutes  of 
1884,  chap.  310,  sect.  3,  and  1885,  chap.  352,  sect.  4,  an  inspector  of  milk 
cannot  appoint  an  agent  who  shall  have  the  right,  in  the  absence  of  the 
inspector,  and  without  his  immediate  personal  direction  and  control, 
to  take,  by  force  and  against  the  will  of  the  owner,  samples  of  milk  for 
analysis  from  a  carriage  used  for  the  conveyance  of  milk. 

Commonwealth  v.  Clarence  A.  Smith,  141  Mass.  page  135. 

Placing  wax  upon  the  top  of  the  cork  in  a  bottle  containing  a  portion 
reserved  from  a  sample  of  milk  taken  for  analysis,  and  not  extending 
the  wax  over  the  mouth  of  the  bottle  and  thus  rendering  the  bottle  air- 
tight, is  not  a  sufficient  compliance  with  the  requirements  of  the 
Statutes  of  1884,  chap.  310,  sect.  4,  that  such  reserved  portion  shall  be 
"  sealed." 

Commonwealth  v.  Charles  W.  Lockhardt,  144  Mass.  page  132. 


No  evidence  of      3.    If  the  said  inspector  or  collector  after  being  so  requested 

analysis  to  be 

received  if  in-    shall  refuse  or  neglect  to  seal  and  deliver  to  the  owner  or  person 
to  deiiveTfam- 8  from  whose  possession  the  same  is  taken,  as  provided  in  section 
1886, 318,  §3.     one  of  this  act,  a  portion  of  the  sample  taken  as  aforesaid,  no 
evidence  shall  be  received  in  any  court  of  the  results  of  the 
analysis  or  test  of  the  same,  which  may  have  been  recorded  and 
preserved  as  aforesaid. 
Eaftalin f°peai        ^'    Whoever  makes,  uses  or  has  in  his  possession,  any  imita- 
or  tampering     ^ion  or  counterfeit  of  any  seal  used  by  any  milk  inspector  or 

with  sample.  ^  J         ^  1 

1886, 318,  §  4.  his  agents,  and  whoever  changes  or  in  any  manner  tampers  with 
any  sample  taken  or  sealed  as  provided  in  section  one,  shall  be 
punished  by  fine  not  exceeding  fifty  dollars  or  by  imprisonment 
in  the  house  of  correction  not  exceeding  ninety  days. 


77 


5.  In  all  cities,  and  in  all  towns  in  which  there  is  an  inspector  Persons  selling 

„      ...  ,  ...     .  .  ,.         milk  from  car- 

OI  milk,  every  person  who  conveys  milk  in  carriages  or  other-  riages  to  be 

wise  for  the  purpose  of  selling  the  same  in  such  city  or  town  p.  s.,  c.  57,  §  3. 
shall  annually,  on  the  first  day  of  May,  or  within  thirty  days 
thereafter,  be  licensed  by  the  inspector  or  inspectors  of  milk  I88O 
of  such  city  or  town  to  sell  milk  within  the  limits  thereof,  and 
shall  pay  to  such  inspector  or  inspectors  fifty  cents  each  to  the 
use  of  the  city  or  town.  The  inspector  or  inspectors  shall  pay 
over  monthly  to  the  treasurer  of  such  city  or  town  all  sums 
collected  by  him  or  them.  Licenses  shall  be  issued  only  iu  the 
names  of  the  owners  of  carriages  or  other  vehicles,  and  shall 
for  the  purposes  of  this  chapter  be  conclusive  evidence  of 
ownership.  No  license  shall  be  sold,  assigned,  or  transferred. 
Each  license  shall  record  the  name,  residence,  place  of  busi- 
ness, number  of  carriages  or  other  vehicles  used,  name  and 
residence  of  every  driver  or  other  person  engaged  in  carrying 
or  selling  said  milk,  and  the  number  of  the  license.  Each 
licensee  shall  before  engaging  in  the  sale  of  milk  cause  his 
name,  the  number  of  his  license,  and  his  place  of  business  to 
be  legibly  placed  on  each  outer  side  of  all  carriages  or  vehicles 
used  by  him  in  the  conveyance  and  sale  of  milk,  and  he  shall 
report  to  the  inspector  or  inspectors  any  change  of  driver  or 
other  person  employed  by  him  which  may  occur  during  the 
term  of  his  license.  Whoever,  without  being  first  licensed 
under  the  provisions  of  this  section,  sells  milk  or  exposes  it  for 
sale  from  carriages  or  other  vehicles,  or  has  it  in  his  custody  or 
possession  with  intent  so  to  sell,  and  whoever  violates  any  of 
the  provisions  of  this  section,  shall  for  a  first  offence  be  pun- 
ished by  fine  of  not  less  than  thirty  nor  more  than  one  hundred 
dollars  ;  for  a  second  offence  by  fine  of  not  less  than  fifty  nor 
more  than  three  hundred  dollars  ;  and  for  a  subsequent  offence 
by  fine  of  fifty  dollars  and  by  imprisonment  in  the  house 
of  correction  for  not  less  than  thirty  nor  more  than  sixty 
days. 

6.  Every  person  before  selling  milk  or  offering  it  for  sale  in  persons  selling 
a  store,  booth,  stand,  or  market-place  in  a  city  or  in  a  town  in  ™c.^ to  be°regis- 
which  an  inspector  or  inspectors  of  milk  are  appointed,  shall  p.^c.  57,  §  4. 
register  in  the  books  of  such  inspector  or  inspectors,  and  shall 

pay  to  him  or  them  fifty  cents  to  the  use  of  such  city  or  town  ;  1880 
and  whoever  neglects  so  to  register  shall  be  punished  for  each 
offence  by  fine  not  exceeding  twenty  dollars. 


78 


A  complaint  by  H.  F.,  inspector  of  milk  in  the  city  of  Boston,  alleging 
that  the  defendant,  being  a  dealer  in  milk,  and  being  recorded  as  a 
dealer  in  milk  in  the  books  of  said  H.  F.,  sold  adulterated  milk  in 
violation  of  the  provisions  of  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  4  (Gen.  Stats., 
chap.  49,  sect.  151),  does  not  sufficiently  allege  that  he  was  recorded 
in  the  books  of  the  inspector  as  a  dealer  in  milk. 

Commonwealth  v.  O'Donnell,  1  Allen,  593. 

A  complaint  for  selling  adulterated  milk  in  violation  of  the  provi- 
sions of  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  4  (Gen.  Stats.,  chap.  49,  sect.  151), 
which,  after  alleging  the  official  character  of  the  inspector,  and  that  he 
kept  an  office  and  books  as  required  by  the  statute,  charges  that  the 
defendant,  being  a  dealer  in  milk,  and  being  recorded  as  a  dealer  in 
milk  "in  the  books  of  said  inspector,"  did  sell,  etc.,  does  not  suffi- 
ciently show  that  he  was  recorded  in  any  such  books  as  the  statute 
requires  the  inspector  to  keep. 

Commonwealth  v.  McCarron,  2  Allen,  157. 


Sun^etc  ^'    Whoever,  by  himself  or  by  his  servant  or  agent,  or  as 

miikterated       *ae  servant  or  a&ent  of  any  other  person,  sells,  exchanges  or 
F886M3i857,2  5'  ^e^vers5  or  nas  ^n  n^s  custody  or  possession  with  intent  to  sell  or 
exchange,  or  exposes  or  offers  for  sale  or  exchange,  adulterated 
1880  milk,  or  milk  to  which  water  or  any  foreign  substance  has  been 

added,  or  milk  produced  from  cows  fed  on  the  refuse  of  distiller- 
ies, or  from  sick  or  diseased  cows,  or  milk  not  of  good  standard 
quality,  shall,  for  a  first  offence,  be  punished  by  fine  of  not  less 
than  fifty  nor  more  than  two  hundred  dollars  ;  for  a  second 
offence,  by  fine  of  not  less  than  one  hundred  nor  more  than 
three  hundred  dollars,  or  by  imprisonment  in  the  house  of  cor- 
rection for  not  less  than  thirty  nor  more  than  sixty  days,  and, 
for  a  subsequent  offence,  by  fine  of  fifty  dollars  and  by  im-^ 
prisonment  in  the  house  of  correction  for  not  less  than  sixty 
nor  more  than  ninety  days. 

1.  A  person  may  be  convicted  of  selling  adulterated  milk,  under 
Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5  (Gen.  Stats.,  chap.  49,  sect.  151),  although 
he  did  not  know  it  to  be  adulterated ;  and  an  averment  in  the  indict- 
ment that  he  had  such  knowledge  may  be  rejected  as  surplusage. 

2.  It  is  not  necessary,  in  such  indictment,  to  aver  that  the  milk  was 
cow's  milk. 

3.  An  indictment  under  alleging  a  sale  of  adulterated  milk  to  a 
woman  is  not  defeated  by  proof  that  she  was  married  and  was  acting 
as  agent  for  her  husband,  if  the  seller  had  no  notice,  express  or  implied, 
of  these  facts. 

4.  An  indictment  under  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5  (Gen.  Stats., 
chap.  49,  sect.  151),  which  charges  that  the  defendant  sold  a  certain 


79 


quantity  of  "adulterated  milk,  to  which  a  large  quantity,  that  is  to 
say,  four  quarts,  of  water  had  been  added,"  is  not  bad  for  duplicity. 
Commonwealth  v.  Farren,  9  Allen,  489. 

1.  An  indictment  which  alleges  that  the  defendant  "  did  unlawfully 
keep,  offer  for  sale  and  sell"  adulterated  milk  charges  but  one  offence. 

2.  In  support  of  such  indictment,  one,  who  in  a  great  many  instances 
has  used  a  lactometer  for  the  purpose  of  testing  the  quality  and  the 
purity  of  milk,  may  testify  to  the  result  of  an  experiment  made  by  him 
with  the  same  lactometer  upon  the  milk  in  question,  although  no 
evidence  is  offered  as  to  the  character  of  the  instrument. 

Commonwealth  v.  Nichols,  10  Allen,  199. 

1.  At  the  trial  of  an  indictment  on  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5 
(Statute  of  1868,  chap.  263),  for  selling  adulterated  milk,  there  was 
evidence  that  the  defendant  [who  was  a  son  of  the  owner  of  a  milk 
route],  with  a  companion  who  was  in  the  same  employment  with 
himself,  knowingly  adulterated  milk  on  its  way  for  distribution  to  his 
father's  customers,  and  then,  having  charge,  with  his  companion,  of 
its  distribution  from  the  wagon  on  which  it  was  conveyed  upon  the 
route,  caused  a  can  of  it  to  be  delivered  to  one  of  the  customers  by  the 
hand  of  his  companion.  Held,  that  he  had  no  ground  of  exception  to 
instructions  to  the  jury,  that,  in  the  absence  of  proof  of  any  previous 
contract  to  supply  milk  to  the  customer,  the  delivery  might  be  deemed 
an  act  of  sale;  nor  to  an  instruction  framed  on  a  supposition  that  the 
jury  might  find  that  he  was  in  the  employment  of  his  father,  although 
there  was  no  averment  in  the  indictment  to  that  effect. 

Commonwealth  v.  Haynes,  107  Mass.  194. 

A  person  may  be  convicted  of  selling  adulterated  milk  upon  a  com- 
plaint under  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5  (Statute  of  1880,  chap.  209, 
sect.  3),  without  allegation  or  proof  that  he  knew  it  to  be  adulterated. 
Commonwealth  v.  Evans,  132  Mass.  11. 

A  complaint  under  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5,  alleging  that  the  de- 
fendant, at  a  time  and  place  named,  had  in  his  possession  a  certain 
quantity,  to  wit,  one  pint,  of  adulterated  milk,  to  wit,  milk  containing 
less  than  thirteen  per  cent,  of  milk  solids,  with  intent  then  and  there 
unlawfully  to  sell  the  same,  is  sufficient,  without  further  alleging  that 
the  milk  was  analyzed,  and  found  on  analysis  to  contain  less  than 
thirteen  per  cent,  of  milk  solids.  At  the  trial  of  a  complaint  under 
Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5,  alleging  that  the  defendant  had  in  his 
possession  adulterated  milk,  to  wit,  milk  containing  less  than  thirteen 
per  cent,  of  milk  solids,  with  intent  to  sell  the  same,  it  is  immaterial 
in  what  manner  the  quantity  of  milk  solids  has  been  reduced  below 
thirteen  per  cent.,  if  the  intent  is  to  sell  the  milk  as  pure  milk,  and  not 
as  skimmed  milk. 

Commonwealth  v.  Bowers,  140  Mass.  483. 

A  complaint,  under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5,  alleging,  in  one 
count,  that  the  defendant,  at  a  time  and  place  named,  sold  a  certain 
quantity,  to  wit,  one  pint,  of  adulterated  milk,  to  wit,  milk  containing 
less  than  thirteen  per  cent,  of  milk  solids,  and  in  another  count  alleg- 


80 


ing  that  the  defendant,  at  the  same  time  and  place,  had  in  his  possession 
a  certain  quantity,  to  wit,  one  pint,  of  adulterated  milk,  to  wit,  milk 
containing  less  than  thirteen  per  cent,  of  milk  solids,  with  intent  then 
and  there  unlawfully  to  sell  the  same,  is  sufficient,  without  further 
alleging  that  the  milk  was  analyzed,  and  found,  on  analysis,  to  contain 
less  than  thirteen  per  cent  of  milk  solids. 

The  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  10,  do  not  prohibit  any  person  not 
an  inspector  of  milk  from  making  a  complaint  for  a  violation  of  the 
provisions  of  the  chapter. 

A  complaint,  under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5,  alleging  that 
the  defendant  sold  one  pint  of  adulterated  milk,  to  wit,  milk  containing 
less  than  thirteen  per  cent,  of  milk  solids,  is  not  supported  by  the  proof 
that  he  sold  the  milk  as  skimmed  milk  out  of  a  tank  marked  as  required 
by  sect.  7,  although  the  milk  was  watered. 

A  complaint,  under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5,  alleging  a  sale 
of  adulterated  milk,  to  wit,  milk  containing  less  than  thirteen  per  cent, 
of  milk  solids,  is  supported  by  proof  of  a  sale  of  milk,  which,  by  the 
removal  of  a  part  of  the  cream,  has  been  reduced  to  solids  below 
thirteen  per  cent.,  unless  the  milk  was  sold  as  skimmed  milk,  and  out 
of  a  vessel,  can,  or  package  marked  as  required  by  sect.  7 ;  and  it  is  not 
necessary  that  a  complaint  charging  such  offence  should  be  drawn 
under  sect.  6. 

At  the  trial  of  a  complaint,  under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5, 
alleging,  in  the  first  count,  a  sale  by  the  defendant,  at  a  time  and  place 
named,  of  adulterated  milk,  and,  in  the  second  count,  the  having  in  his 
possession,  at  the  same  time  and  place,  such  milk,  with  intent  unlaw- 
fully to  sell  the  same,  the  defendant  asked  the  judge  to  rule,  that,  "  if 
the  jury  find,  on  the  evidence,  that  there  was  a  consummated  sale,  they 
cannot  convict  under  the  second  count."  The  judge  declined  so  to 
rule,  and,  after  instructing  the  jury  as  to  what  would  authorize  a  con- 
viction on  the  first  count,  instructed  them  that,  "  if  they  should  further 
find  that  the  defendant  kept  the  same  milk  with  intent  to  sell  it,  they 
would  be  authorized  to  return  a  verdict  of  guilty  on  the  second  count.  ' 
Held,  that  the  defendant  had  no  ground  for  exception. 

Commonwealth  v.  Albert  Tobias,  149  Mass.  page  129. 

At  the  trial  of  a  complaint,  under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5, 
alleging  that  the  defendant  had  in  his  possession  adulterated  milk, 
with  intent  unlawfully  to  sell  the  same,  the  evidence  showed  that  a 
wagon  with  the  defendant's  name  and  a  number  on  it  was  standing  upon 
a  public  street  in  a  city  at  an  early  hour  in  the  morning ;  that  the 
defendant's  name  was  on  the  wagon,  and  there  were  several  eight-quart 
cans  in  the  wagon ;  that  a  collector  of  samples  in  the  employ  of  the 
inspector  of  milk  for  the  city  took  a  sample  of  milk  from  one  of  the 
cans,  which  was  not  marked  "  skimmed  milk;  "  and  that  an  analysis  of 
the  milk  taken  showed  that  it  was  below  the  legal  standard.  Held, 
that  there  was  evidence  of  an  intent  on  the  part  of  the  defendant  to 
sell  the  milk,  which  was  properly  submitted  to  the  jury. 

Commonwealth  v.  Webster  Smith,  143  Mass.  page  169. 


81 


At  the  trial  of  an  indictment  on  the  Pnb.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5, 
charging  the  defendant  with  having  adulterated  milk  in  his  possession, 
with  intent  unlawfully  to  sell  the  same,  an  analyst  in  the  employ  of  the 
inspector  of  milk  may  testify  to  the  result  of  his  analysis  of  the  milk 
taken  from  the  defendant  from  memory,  using  a  memorandum  made  by 
him  at  the  time  of  analysis  to  refresh  his  memory,  without  further 
proof  that  the  requirements  of  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  2,  as 
amended  by  the  Statutes  of  1884,  chap.  310,  sect.  3,  have  been  complied 
with. 

At  the  trial  of  an  indictment  on  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5, 
charging  the  defendant  with  having  adulterated  milk  in  his  possession, 
with  intent  unlawfully  to  sell  the  same,  an  aualyst  in  the  employ  of 
the  inspector  of  milk,  who  analyzed  the  milk  taken  from  the  defendant, 
testified  that  he  reserved  a  portion  of  the  milk  so  taken  by  putting  it 
into  a  bottle,  which  he  corked  and  sealed.  A  chemist  to  whom  the 
analyst  delivered  a  portion  of  the  milk  so  reserved,  testified,  for  the 
defendant,  that  the  bottle  was  not  sealed.  The  defendant  asked  the 
judge  to  rule,  that,  if  the  bottle  was  corked  only,  it  was  not  a  compli- 
ance with  the  Statutes  of  1884,  chap.  310,  sect.  4,  as  to  the  sealing  of 
such  reserved  portion.  The  judge  declined  so  to  rule,  and  instructed 
the  jury  that  they  might  consider  the  evidence  as  bearing  upon  the 
credibility  of  the  government  witness.  Held,  that  the  defendant  had 
no  ground  for  exception. 

If  at  a  trial  of  an  indictment  on  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5, 
charging  the  defendant  with  having  adulterated  milk  in  his  possession, 
with  intent  unlawfully  to  sell  the  same,  an  analyst  in  the  employ  of  the 
inspector  of  milk  of  a  city  testifies  that  he  added,  for  the  preserving 
it,  a  few  drops  of  carbolic  acid  to  the  sample  reserved  from  milk 
delivered  to  him  for  analysis,  it  is  a  question  of  fact  for  the  jury 
whether  the  reservation  of  the  sample  was  in  accordance  with  the 
requirement  of  the  Statutes  of  1884,  chap.  310,  sect.  4. 

Commonwealth  v.  Frank  W.  Spear,  143  Mass.  page  172. 

A  complaint  on  the  Statutes  of  1886,  chap.  318,  sect.  2,  alleging  that, 
on  the  first  day  of  July,  1886,  the  defendant  had  in  his  possession  "one 
pint  of  milk  not  of  standard  quality,  that  is  to  say,  milk  containing  less 
than  thirteen  per  cent,  of  milk  solids,  with  intent  then  and  there 
unlawfully  to  sell  the  same  within  this  Commonwealth,"  is  sufficient, 
without  negativing  the  exception  of  the  months  of  May  and  June. 

The  Statute  of  1885,  chap.  352,  sect.  6,  provide  that  sect.  9  of  the 
Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57  (which  relates  to  the  sale  of  adulterated  milk), 
"  is  hereby  amended  so  as  to  read  as  follows."  In  each  section,  after 
the  words  quoted,  there  follows  a  sentence  which  covers  the  whole 
subject  of  the  original  section.  Held,  that  the  Statutes  of  1886,  chap. 
318,  sect.  2,  was  a  valid  enactment. 

The  Statutes  of  1884,  chap.  310,  sect.  4,  providing  for  the  reservation 
and  sealing,  before  commencing  the  analysis,  of  a  portion  of  the 
sample  of  milk  taken  for  analysis,  is  impliedly  repealed  by  the  Statutes 
of  1886,  chap.  318,  sects.  1,  3. 

Commonwealth  v.  John  II.  Kennison,  143  Mass.  page  418. 


82 


On  a  complaint  for  the  sale  of  milk  not  of  good  standard  quality, 
evidence  that  the  milk  was  delivered  under  a  special  contract  is 
immaterial. 

If  a  buyer  of  milk  takes  a  portion  to  a  milk  inspector,  the  latter  may 
testify  on  the  trial  of  such  a  complaint  as  to  the  results  of  his  analysis. 
Commonwealth  v.  Benjamin  F.  Holt,  146  Mass.  page  38. 

An  averment  in  a  complaint  under  the  milk  acts,  that  the  defendants 
were  "  partners,"  is  mere  surplusage,  and  need  not  be  proved. 

On  such  a  complaint,  evidence  that  the  defendant  was  on  a  wagon 
with  a  license  number  on  it,  and  containing  milk  cans,  from  one  of 
which  was  taken  adulterated  milk,  is  competent  on  the  issue  that  he 
was  in  possession  of  the  milk  to  sell  it. 

Commonwealth  v.  Gridley  B.  Howell,  146  Mass.  page  128. 

A  motion  to  quash  an  indictment  because  it  "  sets  forth  no  crime  or 
offence  known  to  the  law,"  made  after  the  impanelling  of  the  jury,  is 
filed  too  late;  nor  does  it  assign  "  specifically  the  objection  relied  on," 
within  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  214,  sect.  25. 

An  indictment  on  the  Statutes  of  1886,  chap.  318,  sect.  2,  alleging 
that  the  defendant  had  in  his  "possession  milk  to  which  a  certain 
foreign  substance  had  been  added,  to  wit,  annotto  coloring  matter," 
with  intent  unlawfully  to  sell  the  same,  is  sufficient  without  naming 
the  quantity. 

Evidence  offered  at  the  trial  of  such  an  indictment  as  to  two  samples 
of  milk,  taken  from  the  defendant's  possession  at  substantially  the 
same  time,  is  competent,  and  the  government  cannot  be  required  at  the 
time  of  the  offer,  if  ever,  to  elect  which  sample  it  will  rely  on. 

The  addition  of  annotto  coloring  matter,  whether  injurious  to  health 
or  not,  is  punishable  under  the  statute. 

Evidence  that  the  milk  was  of  low  grade  is  competent,  although  it 
may  tend  to  prove  another  offence. 

Commonwealth  v.  John  V.  Schaffner,  146  Mass.  page  512. 


Garbage  and        8.    Whoever  knowingly  feeds  or  has  in  his  possession  with 

offal  not  to  be       .  „  °  '  ■  „  . 

fed  to  milch      intent  to  feed  to  any  milch  cow,  any  garbage,  refuse  or  otral 

cows.  » 

1889,326.  collected  by  any  city  or  town,  or  by  any  person  having  authority 
from  any  city  or  town,  by  contract  or  otherwise,  shall  be  pun- 
ished by  imprisonment  in  the  jail  or  house  of  correction  not 
exceeding  sixty  days  or  by  fine  not  exceeding  one  hundred 
dollars. 

Penalty  for  sell-     9.    Whoever,  by  himself  or  by  his  servant,  or  as  the  servant 
which^reamhas  or  agent  of  any  other  person,  sells,  exchanges,  or  delivers,  or 
p.  s.,  c.n57l§  6.  has  in  his  custody  or  possession  with  intent  to  sell  or  exchange, 
or  exposes  or  offers  for  sale  as  pure  milk,  any  milk  from  which 
the  cream  or  a  part  thereof  has  been  removed,  shall  be  punished 
by  the  penalties  provided  in  the  preceding  section. 


83 


10.  No  dealer  in  milk,  and  no  servant  or  agent  of  such  a  VesBehMJontain. 
dealer,  shall  sell,  exchange,  or  deliver,  or  have  in  his  custody  which  cream 

JlUS  l)C€SIl  1*6- 

or  possession  with  intent  to  sell,  exchange,  or  deliver  milk  from  moved  to  be 
which  the  cream  or  any  part  thereof  has  been  removed,  unless  "  skimmed 
in  a  conspicuous  place  above  the  centre  upon  the  outside  of  p.'sV,  c.  57,  §  7. 

1885  (>52  §  7 

every  vessel,  can  or  package  from  Or  in  which  such  milk  is  sold,  ' 
the  words  "skimmed  milk"  are  distinctly  marked  in  uncon- 
densed  Gothic  letters  not  less  than  one  inch  in  length.  Who- 
ever violates  the  provisions  of  this  section  shall  be  punished  by 
the  penalties  provided  in  section  five. 

11.  No  person  shall  sell,  exchange  or  deliver,  or  have  in  his  standard  of 

.  skimmed  milk 

custody  or  possession  with  intent  to  sell,  exchange  or  deliver,  and  penalty  for 

-1.11  ,  .  ,  violation. 

skimmed  milk  containing  less  than  nine  and  three-tenths  per  1885, 352,  §  8. 
cent,  of  milk  solids  exclusive  of  fat.    Whoever  violates  the 
provisions  of  this  section  shall  be  punished  by  the  penalties 
provided  in  section  five  of  chapter  fifty-seven  of  the  Public 
Statutes. 

The  Statute  of  1885,  chap.  352,  sect.  8,  provides  that  no  person  shall 
sell,  or  have  in  his  possession  with  intent  to  sell,  skimmed  milk  below 
a  certain  standard,  and  enacts  that  whoever  violates  the  provisions  of 
this  section  shall  be  punished  by  the  penalties  provided  in  the  Pub. 
Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5.  Held,  on  a  complaint  made  under  the  Statutes 
of  1885,  chap.  352,  sect.  8,  for  an  offence  committed  after  the  Statutes 
of  1886,  chap.  318,  sect.  2,  took  effect,  that,  even  if  the  last-named 
statute  repealed  by  implication  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  5,  the 
complaint  could  be  maintained. 

Commonwealth  v.  William  F.  Welch,  144  Mass.  page  357. 

12.  Any  inspector  of  milk,  and  any  servant  or  agent  of  an  Penalty  on  in- 
inspector,  who  wilfully  connives  at  or  assists  in  a  violation  of  for  conniving,' 
the  provisions  of  this  chapter,  and  whoever  hinders,  obstructs,  p.°s  ,  c.  57,  §  8. 
or  in  any  way  interferes  with  any  inspector  of  milk,  or  any  ser-  1884'310,  §  5- 
vaut  or  agent  of  an  inspector,  in  the  performance  of  his  duty, 

shall  be  punished  by  fine  of  not  less  than  one  hundred  nor 
more  than  three  hundred  dollars,  or  by  imprisonment  for  not 
less  than  thirty  nor  more  than  sixty  days. 

13.  In  all  prosecutions  under  chapter  three  hundred  and  Whatmiiktobe 

deemed  adulter- 

eighteen  of  the  acts  of  eighteen  hundred  and  eighty-six,  if  the  ated. 

.„  ,  1886,  318,  §  2, 

milk  is  shown  upon  analysis  to  contain  more  than  eighty-seven  last  clause, 
per  cent,  of  watery  fluid,  or  to  contain  less  than  thirteen  . per 
cent,  of  milk  solids,  or  to  contain  less  than  nine  and  three- 
tenths  per  cent,  of  milk  solids  exclusive  of  fat,  it  shall  be 


84 


deemed  for  the  purposes  of  this  act  to  be  not  of  good  standard 
quality,  except  during  the  months  of  May  and  June,  when  milk 
containing  less  than  twelve  per  cent,  of  milk  solids  shall  be 
deemed  to  be  not  of  good  standard  quality. 

Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sect.  9  (Statute  of  1880,  chap.  209,  sect.  7), 
providing  that  "in  all  prosecutions  under  this  act,"  for  selling  adul- 
terated milk,  "if  the  milk  shall  be  shown  upon  analysis  to  contain 
more  than  eighty-seven  per  centum  of  watery  fluid  or  to  contain  less 
than  thirteen  per  centum  of  milk  solids,  it  shall  be  deemed  for  the 
purposes  of  this  act  to  be  adulterated,"  is  constitutional. 

Commonwealth  v.  Evans,  132  Mass.  11. 

A  complaint  under  the  Pub.  Stats.,  chap.  57,  sects.  5,  9,  alleging 
that  the  defendant,  at  a  time  and  place  named,  had  in  his  custody  and 
possession  a  certain  quantity,  to  wit,  one  pint,  of  adulterated  milk,  to 
wit,  milk  then  and  there  containing  less  than  thirteen  per  cent,  of  milk 
solids,  with  intent  then  and  there  unlawfully  to  sell  the  same,  is 
sufficient. 

Commonwealth  v.  Keenan,  139  Mass.  193. 


Inspectors  to 
institute  com- 
plaints. 

P.  S.,  c.  57,  §  10. 


Names,  etc.,  of 
persons  con- 
victed to  be 
published. 
F.S.,  c.  57,  §  11. 


Powers  of 
inspectors  under 
chap.  263  of 
Acts  of  18S2. 
1885,  352,  §  5. 


Lower  courts 
may  try  milk 
cases. 

1885,  149,  §  1. 


14.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  every  inspector  to  institute  a 
complaint  for  a  violation  of  any  of  the  provisions  of  this  chap- 
ter on  the  information  of  any  person  who  lays  before  him  satis- 
factory evidence  by  which  to  sustain  such  complaint. 

15.  Each  inspector  shall  cause  the  name  and  place  of 
business  of  every  person  convicted  of  selling  adulterated  milk, 
or  of  having  the  same  in  his  possession  with  intent  to  sell,  to  be 
published  in  two  newspapers  in  the  county  in  which  the  offence 
was  committed. 

16.  Inspectors  appointed  under  the  provisions  of  chapter 
two  hundred  and  sixty-three  of  the  acts  of  the  year  eighteen 
hundred  and  eighty-two  shall  have  the  power  and  authority 
conferred  upon  a  city  or  town  inspector  by  section  one  of  chap- 
ter three  hundred  and  eighteen  of  the  acts  of  eighteen  hundred 
and  eighty-six.  They  shall  also  have  the  power  and  authority 
conferred  upon  inspectors  of  milk  by  section  twenty  of  chapter 
fifty-six  of  the  Public  Statutes. 

17.  Municipal,  district  and  police  courts  and  trial  justices 
shall,  in  their  respective  counties,  concurrently  with  the  superior 
court,  have  jurisdiction  of  cases  arising  under  the  provisions  of 
chapter  fifty-seven  of  the  Public  Statutes  relating  to  the  inspec- 
tion and  sale  of  milk,  and  may  impose  the  same  penalties  for 
any  violation  of  the  provisions  of  said  chapter  as  therein  pro- 
vided. 


85 


BUTTER,   IMITATION  BUTTER  AND  CHEESE. 

18.  Whoever,  by  himself  or  his  agents,  sells,  exposes  for  Spurious  butter 
sale,  or  has  in  his  possession  with  intent  to  sell,  any  article,  1886, 317,  §  l." 
substance  or  compound,  made  in  imitation  or  semblance  of 

butter  or  as  a  substitute  for  butter,  and  not  made  exclusively 
and  wholly  of  milk  or  cream,  or  containing  any  fats,  oils  or 
grease  not  produced  from  milk  or  cream,  shall  have  the  words 
"  imitation  butter,"  or  if  such  substitute  is  the  compound  known 
as  oleomargarine,  then  the  word  "oleomargarine,"  or  if  it  is 
known  as  butterine,  then  the  word  "butterine,"  stamped, 
labelled  or  marked  in  a  straight  line  in  printed  letters  of  plain, 
uncondensed  Gothic  type,  not  less  than  one-half  inch  in  length, 
so  that  said  words  cannot  be  easily  defaced,  upon  the  top,  side 
and  bottom  of  every  tub,  firkin,  box  or  package  containing 
any  of  said  article,  substance  or  compound.  The  said  stamp, 
label  or  mark  shall  contain  no  other  words.  And  whoever,  by 
himself  or  his  agents,  exposes  or  offers  for  sale  any  of  the  said 
article,  substance  or  compound  not  in  the  original  package, 
shall  attach  to  the  said  article,  substance  or  compound,  in  a 
conspicuous  place,  a  label  bearing  the  words  "imitation  but- 
ter," "oleomargarine,"  or  "butterine,"  as  the  article  may  be. 
in  printed  letters  of  plain,  uncondensed  Gothic  type,  not  less 
than  one-half  inch  in  length.    And  in  cases  of  retail  sales  of  Retail  packages 

°  to  be  marked. 

any  of  said  article,  substance  or  compound  not  in  the  original 
packages,  the  seller  shall,  by  himself  or  his  agents,  attach  to 
each  package  so  sold,  and  shall  deliver  therewith  to  the  pur- 
chaser, a  label  or  wrapper  bearing  in  a  conspicuous  place  upon 
the  outside  of  the  package  the  words  "  imitation  butter," 
"oleomargarine,"  or  "butterine,"  and  no  other  words,  in 
printed  letters  in  a  straight  line  of  plain,  uncondensed  Gothic 
type,  not  less  than  one-half  inch  in  length. 

Oleomargarine  was  exposed  for  sale  in  the  original  package,  namely, 
a  tub,  the  top  of  the  cover  of  which  had  been  duly  marked,  as  well  as 
the  side  and  bottom,  but  from  which  the  cover  had  been  removed, 
disclosing  the  superficial  surface  of  the  oleomargarine  without  any 
mark.  Held,  that  the  terms  of  the  Statutes  of  1886,  chap.  317,  sect.  1, 
had  been  complied  with. 

Commonwealth  v.  Charles  W.  Bean,  148  Mass.  page  172. 

19.  Whoever,  by  himself  or  his  agents,  sells,  exposes  for  Spurious  cheese 

i  ,  .  •  i     •  ...      to  be  plainly 

sale,  or  has  m  his  possession  with  intent  to  sell,  any  article,  marked  as  such. 


86 


P.S.,  c.  56,  §  18 
1885,  352,  §  2. 


Wrappers  to  be 
marked. 


Penalties  for 
violation  of 
statutes  and  for 
erasure  of 
marks,  etc. 
1886,  317,  §  2. 


Complaints  for 
violations  to  be 
instituted  by 
inspectors  of 
milk. 

1884,  310,  §  2. 


substance  or  compound  made  in  imitation  or  semblance  of 
cheese,  or  as  a  substitute  for  cheese,  and  not  made  exclusively 
and  wholly  of  milk  or  cream,  or  containing  any  fats,  oils  or 
grease  not  produced  from  milk  or  cream,  shall  have  the  words 
"  imitation  cheese,"  stamped,  labelled  or  marked,  in  printed 
letters  of  plain,  uncondensed  Gothic  type,  not  less  than  one 
inch  in  length,  so  that  said  words  cannot  be  easily  defaced, 
upon  the  side  of  every  cheese  cloth  or  band  around  the  same, 
and  upon  the  top  and  side  of  every  tub,  firkin,  box  or  package 
containing  any  of  said  article,  substance  or  compound.  And  in 
case  of  retail  sales  of  any  of  said  article,  substance  or  compound 
not  in  the  original  packages,  the  seller  shall,  by  himself  or  his 
agents,  attach  to  each  package  so  sold  at  retail,  and  shall 
deliver  therewith  to  the  purchaser,  a  label  or  wrapper  bearing 
in  a  conspicuous  place  upon  the  outside  of  the  package  the 
words  "imitation  cheese,"  in  printed  letters  of  plain,  uncon- 
densed Gothic  type,  not  less  than  one-half  inch  in  length. 

20.  Whoever  sells,  exposes  for  sale,  or  has  in  his  posses- 
sion with  intent  to  sell,  any  article,  substance  or  compound 
made  in  imitation  or  semblance  of  butter  or  cheese,  or  as  a  sub- 
stitute for  butter  or  cheese,  except  as  provided  in  the  two  preced- 
ing sections,  and  whoever  with  intent  to  deceive,  defaces,  erases, 
cancels  or  removes  any  mark,  stamp,  brand,  label  or  wrapper 
provided  for  in  said  sections,  or  in  any  manner  shall  falsely 
label,  stamp  or  mark  any  box,  tub,  article  or  package  marked, 
stamped  or  labelled  as  aforesaid,  shall  for  every  such  offence 
forfeit  to  the  city  or  town  where  the  offence  was  committed  one 
hundred  dollars,  and  for  a  second  and  each  subsequent  offence 
two  hundred  dollars. 

21.  Inspectors  of  milk  shall  institute  complaints  for  viola- 
tions of  the  provisions  of  the  three  preceding  sections  when 
they  have  reasonable  cause  to  believe  that  such  provisions  have 
been  violated,  and  on  the  information  of  any  person  who  lays 
before  them  satisfactory  evidence  by  which  to  sustain  such 
complaint.  Said  inspectors  may  enter  all  places  where  butter 
or  cheese  is  stored  or  kept  for  sale,  and  said  inspectors  shall 
also  take  specimens  of  suspected  butter  and  cheese  and  cause 
them  to  be  analyzed  or  otherwise  satisfactorily  tested,  the 
result  of  which  analysis  or  test  they  shall  record  and  preserve 
as  evidence  ;  and  a  certificate  of  such  result,  sworn  to  by  the 
analyzer,  shall  be  admitted  in  evidence  in  all  prosecutions  under 


87 


this  and  the  three  preceding  sections.  The  expense  of  such 
analysis  or  test,  not  exceeding  twenty  dollars  in  any  one  case, 
may  be  included  in  the  costs  of  such  prosecutions.  Whoever 
hinders,  obstructs,  or  in  any  wa"y  interferes  with  any  inspector, 
or  any  agent  of  an  inspector,  in  the  performance  of  his  duty? 
shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  of  fifty  dollars  for  the  first  offence, 
and  of  one  hundred  dollars  for  each  subsequent  offence. 

22.  For  the  purposes  of  the  four  preceding  sections  the  Terms  "butter" 
terms  "butter"  and  "cheese"  shall  mean  the  products  which  defined. 

are  usually  known  by  these  names,  and  are  manufactured  P'S''  °"  °6' §  21" 
exclusively  from  milk  or  cream,  with  salt  and  rennet,  and  with 
or  without  coloring  matter. 

23.  Whoever,  by  himself  or  his  agents,  sells,  exposes  for  Spurious  butter 

....  .  .  .  not  to  be  marked 

sale,  or  has  in  his  possession  with  intent  to  sell,  any  article,  "dairy  "or 
substance  or  compound,  made  in  imitation  or  semblance  of  Penalty, 
butter  or  as  a  substitute  for  butter,  and  not  made  exclusively  1886»317,§3- 
and  wholly  of  milk  or  cream,  or  containing  any  fats,  oils  or 
grease  not  produced  from  milk  or  cream,  contained  in  any  box, 
tub,  article  or  package,  marked  or  labelled  with  the  word 
"  dairy,"  or  the  word  ^  creamery,"  shall  for  every  such  offence 
forfeit  to  the  city  or  town  where  the  offence  was  committed  one 
hundred  dollars,  and  for  a  second  and  each  subsequent  offence 
two  hundred  dollars. 

24.  Every  person  who  conveys  any  imitation  butter,  oleo-  Persons  selling 

.  .  .  imitation  butter 

margarine  or  butterme  in  carriages  or  otherwise,  for  the  pur-  from  carriages 
pose  of  selling  the  same  in  any  city  or  town,  shall  within  thirty  Penalties, 
days  of  the  passage  of  this  act,  and  annually  on  the  first  day  18'0>ol<5§4- 
of  May,  or  within  thirty  days  thereafter,  be  licensed  by  the 
inspector  or  inspectors  of  milk  of  such  city  or  town  to  sell  the 
same  within  the  limits  thereof,  and  shall  pay  to  such  inspector 
or  inspectors  fifty  cents  to  the  use  of  the  city  or  town.  The 
inspector  or  inspectors  shall  pay  over  monthly  to  the  treasurer 
of  such  city  or  town  all  sums  collected  by  him  or  them.  In 
towns  in  which  there  is  no  inspector  of  milk,  licenses  shall  be 
issued  by  the  town  clerk.  Licenses  shall  be  issued  only  in  the 
names  of  the  owners  of  carriages  or  other  vehicles,  and  shall, 
for  the  purposes  of  this  chapter,  be  conclusive  evidence  of 
ownership.  No  license  shall  be  sold,  assigned  or  transferred. 
Each  license  shall  record  the  name,  residence,  place  of  busi- 
ness, number  of  carriages  or  other  vehicles  used,  the  name  and 
residence  of  every  driver  or  other  person  engaged  in  carrying  or 


selling  imitation  butter,  oleomargarine  or  butterine,  and  the 
number  of  the  license.  Each  licensee  shall  before  engaging  in 
the  sale  of  any  of  the  articles  as  aforesaid  cause  his  name,  the  I 
number  of  his  license,  and  his  j^lace  of  business  to  be  legibly 
placed  on  each  outer  side  of  all  carriages  or  vehicles  used  by 
him  in  the  conveyance  and  sale  of  the  articles  as  aforesaid,  in 
Gothic  letters  not  less  than  one  inch  in  length,  and  he  shall 
report  to  the  inspector  or  inspectors  any  change  of  driver  or 
other  person  employed  by  him  which  may  occur  during  the 
term  of  his  license.  Whoever,  without  being  first  licensed 
under  the  provisions  of  this  section,  sells  any  of  the  said  articles 
as  aforesaid,  or  exposes  or  offers  them  for  sale  from  carriages 
or  other  vehicles,  or  has  them  in  his  custody  or  possession  with 
intent  so  to  sell,  and  whoever  violates  any  of  the  provisions  of 
this  section,  shall,  for  the  first  offence,  be  punished  by  fine  of 
not  less  than  thirty  nor  more  than  one  hundred  dollars  ;  for  a 
second  offence,  by  fine  of  not  less  than  fifty  nor  more  than  three 
hundred  dollars. 

other peradns       25.    Every  person  before  selling  or  offering  for  sale  anv  of 

selling  imitation  J    1  0  °  J 

butter  to  be      the  said  articles  in  a  store,  booth,  stand  or  market-place  in  a 

registered.  \.  w 

1886, 317,  §  5.  city  or  in  a  town  in  which  an  inspector  or  inspectors  of  milk 
are  appointed,  shall  within  thirty  days  of  the  passage  of  this 
act,  and  annually  on  the  first  day  of  May,  or  within  thirty  days 
thereafter,  register  in  the  books  of  such  inspector  or  inspectors, 
or  if  there  be  no  inspector  then  in  the  books  of  the  town  clerk, 
and  shall  pay  to  him  or  them  fifty  cents  to  the  use  of  such  city 
or  town  ;  and  whoever  neglects  to  so  register  shall  be  punished 
for  each  offence  by  fine  not  exceeding  twenty  dollars. 

Portion  of  sam-      20.    Before  commencing  the  analysis  of  any  sample  the  per- 

ple  to  be  J  i  i 

reserved  for      son  making  the  same  shall  reserve  a  portion  which  shall  be 

defendant.  .  .  . 

1884, 310,  §  4.  sealed  ;  and  in  case  of  a  complaint  against  any  person  the 
reserved  portion  of  the  sample  alleged  to  be  adulterated  shall 
upon  application  be  delivered  to  the  defendant  or  his  attorney. 


LARD. 

Compound  lard      27.    No  manufacturer  or  other  person  shall  sell,  deliver, 

to  be  properly 

labelled.  prepare,  put  up,  expose  or  offer  for  sale  any  lard,  or  any 

1887, 44J,  §  i.  arftcie  intended  for  use  as  lard,  which  contains  any  ingredient 
but  the  pure  fat  of  swine,  in  any  tierce,  bucket,  pail  or  other 
vessel  or  wrapper,  or  under  any  label,  bearing  the  words 
"pure,"  "refined,"  "family,"  or  either  of  them,  alone  or  in 


89 


combination  with  other  words,  nor  unless  every  vessel,  wrap- 
per or  label,  in  or  under  which  such  article  is  sold  or  delivered, 
or  prepared,  put  up  or  exposed  for  sale,  bears  on  the  top  or 
outer  side  thereof,  in  letters  not  less  than  one-half  inch  in 
length  and  plainly  exposed  to  view,  the  words:  —  Compound 
Lard.  Any  person  who  violates  any  provision  hereof  shall  be 
punished  by  fine  not  exceeding  fifty  dollars  for  the  first  or  one 
hundred  dollars  for  any  subsequent  offence. 

OF  THE  INSPECTION  AND  SALE  OF  PROVISIONS,  AND  ANIMALS 
INTENDED  FOR  SLAUGHTER. 

28.  The  mayor  and  aldermen  of  cities  and  the  selectmen  of  Aepnpad£tm!n2t  oi 
towns  may  annually  appoint  one  or  more  persons  to  be  inspec-  jj^gfj™  of 
tors  of  provisions  and  of   animals   intended  for  slaughter.  p-s-> c-  58»  §  *• 
Such  inspectors  shall  be  sworn  faithfully  to  discharge  the  duties  1876 

of  their  office,  and  shall  receive  such  compensation  as  the  city 
council  or  the  selectmen  shall  determine. 

29.  Said  inspectors  may  inspect  all  animals  intended  for  Duties  and 
slaughter,  and  all  meats,  fish,  vegetables,  produce,  fruits,  and  inspectors, 
provisions  of  all  kinds,  found  in  said  cities  or  towns,  or  exposed  1  *S''  °' 58,  §  2' 
for  sale  or  kept  with  intent  to  sell  therein  ;  and  may  for  this 

purpose  enter  into  all  buildings  or  enclosures  where  said  ani- 
mals, meats,  fish,  vegetables,  produce,  fruits  or  provisions  are 
kept,  stored,  or  exposed  for  slaughter  or  sale.  When  such 
animals,  meat,  fish,  vegetables,  produce,  fruit  or  provisions  are 
found  on  such  inspection  to  be  tainted,  diseased,  corrupted, 
decayed,  or  unwholesome  from  any  cause,  said  inspectors  shall 
seize  the  same,  and  cause  them  or  it  to  be  destroyed  or  disposed 
of  otherwise  than  for  food  ;  but  if,  at  the  time  of  the  seizure, 
the  owner  of  the  property  seized  notifies  in  writing  the  inspector 
seizing  the  same  of  his  desire  to  appeal  to  the  board  of  health, 
said  inspector  shall  cause  said  animals,  meat,  fish,  vegetables, 
produce,  fruit  or  provisions  to  be  inspected  by  said  board  of 
health,  or  by  a  committee  thereof  consisting  of  not  less  than 
two  members  ;  and  if  said  board  or  committee  find  the  same  to 
be  tainted,  diseased,  corrupted  or  unwholesome,  they  shall 
order  the  same  to  be  destroyed  or  disposed  of  otherwise  than 
for  food.  If  said  board  or  committee  do  not  so  find,  they  shall 
order  said  animals,  meat,  fish,  vegetables,  produce,  fruit  or 
provisions  to  be  forthwith  returned  to  the  owner  thereof.  All 
moneys  received  by  said  inspectors  or  board  of  health  for 


90 


property  disposed  of  as  aforesaid  shall,  after  deducting  all 
expenses  incurred  by  reason  of  such  seizure,  be  paid  to  the 
owner  of  such  property. 
Duties  and  30.    Said  inspectors  may  inspect  all  veal  found  in  said  cities 

powers  relative 

to  veal.  ^  ^  or  towns  or  offered  or  exposed  for  sale  or  kept  with  intent  to 
sell  therein,  and  if  said  veal  is,  in  the  judgment  of  the 
inspector,  that  of  a  calf  killed  under  four  weeks  old,  he  shall 
seize  the  same  and  cause  it  to  be  destroyed  or  disposed  of  as 
provided  in  the  preceding  section,  subject,  however,  to  the 
provisions  therein  contained  concerning  appeal  and  the  disposal 
of  moneys. 

Killing  for  sale,     31.    Whoever  kills  or  causes  to  be  killed,  for  the  purpose  of 

or  selling  calf  '  L  4 

wwka^Sd°ur    sa^e'        Ca^  ^eSS  ^an  *?0U1  wee^s        or  knowingly  sells,  or 
p.  s.,  c.  208,  §  2.  has  in  his  possession  with  intent  to  sell,  the  meat  of  any  calf 
killed  when  less  than  four  weeks  old,  shall  be  punished  by 
18(>6  imprisonment  in  the  jail  or  house  of  correction  not  exceeding 

six  months,  or  by  fine  not  exceeding  two  hundred  dollars,  or  by 
both  such  imprisonment  and  fine  ;  and  all  such  meat  exposed 
for  sale,  or  kept  with  intent  to  make  sale  thereof,  may  be  seized 
and  destroyed  by  any  board  of  health  or  health  officer,  or  by 
any  sheriff,  deputy-sheriff,  constable  or  police  officer. 

Where  a  party  is  charged  with  an  offence  of  "  killing,  or  causing  to 
be  killed,  for  the  purpose  of  sale,  any  calf  less  than  four  weeks  old,"  it 
is  not  necessary  to  allege  in  the  indictment  or  prove  that  he  knew  the 
calf  to  be  less  than  four  weeks  old.  The  defendant  is  bound  to  know 
the  facts  and  obey  the  law  at  his  peril. 

Under  the  next  clause  of  this  section,  the  offence  is  not  the  killing  of 
the  calf,  but  "  knowingly"  selling,  or  having  in  possession  with  intent 
to  sell,  the  meat  of  a  calf  killed  when  less  than  four  weeks  old;  and 
this  language  makes  the  defendant's  knowledge  essential  to  be  alleged 
and  proved. 

The  legislature  saw  fit  to  make  the  man  who  kills,  or  causes  to  be 
killed,  a  calf  for  the  purpose  of  sale,  at  all  events  punishable  if  the 
animal  was  less  than  four  weeks  old ;  but  to  punish  the  man  who  sells 
veal  only  in  case  he  knows  it  to  have  been  killed  when  under  four 
weeks  old. 

Commonwealth  v.  Raymond,  97  Mass.  567. 
Search  warrants     32.    When  complaint  is  made  on  oath  to  any  police,  district  or 

for  un whole-  .  .     ,  .  .  .  . ,      .      ,  .  , 

some  food,  etc.  municipal  court,  or  to  a  magistrate  authorized  to  issue  warrants 
.,  c.  58,  §4.       crimjuaj  caseS)  that  the  complainant  believes  that  any  dis- 
eased animals,  or  any  tainted,  diseased,  corrupted,  decayed,  or 
unwholesome  meat,  fish,  vegetables,  produce,  fruit,  or  provisions 


91 


of  any  kind,  or  any  veal  of  a  calf  killed  under  four  weeks  old, 
are  kept  or  concealed  in  a  particular  house  or  place  with  the 
intent  to  kill,  sell,  or  offer  the  same  for  sale  for  food,  the  court 
or  magistrate,  if  satisfied  there  is  reasonable  cause  for  such 
belief,  shall  issue  a  warrant  to  search  for  such  animals  or 
articles,  and  all  such  warrants  shall  be  directed  and  executed  as 
provided  in  section  three  of  chapter  two  hundred  and  twelve 
[of  the  Public  Statutes].  If,  upon  hearing,  said  court  or  magis- 
trate determines  that  said  animals  or  articles  or  any  of  them 
were  kept  or  concealed  for  the  purposes  aforesaid,  the  same 
shall  be  destroyed  or  disposed  of  by  the  inspector,  or  by  any 
officer  designated  by  the  court  or  magistrate  according  to  the 
provisions  of  section  two  of  this  chapter  ;  if  the  court  or  magis- 
trate does  not  so  determine,  said  animals  or  articles  shall  be 
returned  to  the  owner. 

33.  Whoever  knowingly  sells,  or  offers  or  exposes  for  sale,  Penalty  for 
or  has  in  his  possession  with  intent  to  sell  for  food,  any  diseased  SgJ^etc^un-6 1- 
animal,  or  any  tainted,  diseased,  corrupted,  decayed,  or  un-  food.es°me 
wholesome  meat,  fish,  vegetables,  produce,  fruit,  or  provisions  p's'' c'58' §  5' 
of  any  kind  whatever,  shall  be  punished  by  imprisonment  in 

jail  for  not  more  than  sixty  days,  or  by  fine  of  not  more  than 
one  hundred  dollars. 

34.  The  place  where  property  condemned  under  this  chapter  Name  and  place 

.     »        j         t  ,1  £  i  •        'j.  of  business  of 

is  round,  and  the  name  or  every  person  in  whose  possession  it  person  con- 
is  found,  and  of  every  person  convicted  of  an  offence  under  the  published*!6 
preceding  section,  shall  be  published  in  two  newspapers  pub-  p's'' c'  °8,  §  6' 
lished  in  the  county  in  which  the  property  was  found  or  the 
conviction  took  place. 

35.  The  provisions  of  this  chapter  shall  not  be  in  force  in  This  chapter  not 
any  city  or  town  unless  they  are  adopted  by  the  city  council  of  unless  accepted, 
such  city  or  by  the  inhabitants  of  such  town,  or  unless  the  pro-  P"S"'  c'  °S' §  7' 
visions  of  chapter  one  hundred  and  eighty  of  the  statutes  of 

the  year  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy-six  have  been  already 
so  adopted. 

POULTRY. 

36.  No  poultry,  except  it  be  alive,  shall  be  sold  or  exposed  Poultry  to  be 

A  ^  L  '  A  properly 

for  sale  until  it  has  been  properly  dressed,  by  the  removal  of  ^Bed  before 
the  crop  and  entrails  when  containing  food.  1887,  94,  §  l. 

37.  Whoever  knowingly  sells  or  exposes  for  sale  poultry  Penalty, 
contrary  to  the  provisions  of  section  one  of  this  act  shall  be  to  enforce.  §  2. 

1887,  94. 


92 


punished  by  a  fine  of  not  less  than  five  nor  more  than  fifty  dol- 
lars for  each  offence.  The  boards  of  health  in  the  several 
cities  and  towns  shall  cause  the  provisions  of  this  act  to  be 
enforced  in  their  respective  cities  and  towns. 


Penalty  for 
selling  tainted 
fish  for  food. 
P.S.,  c.  56, 


38. 


OF  THE  SALE  OP  TAINTED  OR  DAMAGED  FISH. 

Whoever  sells  within  this  Commonwealth  or  exports 


therefrom  tainted  or  damaged  fish,  unless  with  the  intent  that 
the  same  shall  be  used  for  some  other  purpose  than  as  food, 
1801)  shall  forfeit  ten  dollars  for  every  hundred  pounds  of  such  fish, 

and  in  the  same  proportion  for  any  other  quantity  ;  and  upon  a 
trial  in  such  case  the  burden  of  proof  shall  be  upon  the  defend- 
ant to  show  for  what  purpose  such  fish  was  so  exported  or  sold. 


Chocolate,  how 
to  be  stamped. 
P.S.,  c.  60,  §  8. 


1803 


Ingredients  of. 


Boxes,  how 
branded. 
P.S.,  c.  60,  §  9. 


Boxes,  when 
may  be  seized, 
etc. 

P.S.,  c.  60,  §  10. 


OF  THE  SALE  OF  CHOCOLATE. 

39.  No  manufacturer  of  chocolate  shall  make  any  cake  of 
chocolate  except  in  pans  in  which  are  stamped  the  first  letter  of 
his  christian  name,  the  whole  of  his  surname,  the  name  of  the 
town  where  he  resides,  and  the  quality  of  the  chocolate  in 
figures,  No.  1,  No.  2,  No,  3,  as  the  case  may  be,  and  the  let- 
ters Mass. 

40.  Number  one  shall  be  made  of  cocoa  of  the  first  quality, 
and  number  two  of  cocoa  of  the  second  quality,  and  both  shall 
be  free  from  adulteration ;  number  three  may  be  made  of  the 
inferior  Kinds  and  qualities  of  cocoa.  Each  box  containing 
chocolate  shall  be  branded  on  the  end  thereof  with  the  word 
chocolate,  the  name  of  the  manufacturer,  the  name  of  the  town 
where  it  was  manufactured,  and  the  quality,  as  described  and 
directed  in  the  preceding  section  for  the  pans. 

41.  If  chocolate  manufactured  in  this  Commonwealth  is 
offered  for  sale  or  found  within  the  same,  not  being  of  one  of  the 
qualities  described  in  the  two  preceding  sections  and  marked 
as  therein  directed,  the  same  may  be  seized  and  libelled. 


Sale  of  adulter- 
ated vinegar. 
Penalty. 
P.  S.,  c.  60,  §  69. 
1883,  257,  §  1. 


1 880 


OF  THE  ADULTERATION  OF  VINEGAR. 

42.  Every  person  who  manufactures  for  sale  or  offers  or 
exposes  for  sale  as  cider  vinegar,  any  vinegar  not  the  legiti- 
mate product  of  pure  apple  juice,  known  as  apple  cider  or 
vinegar,  not  made  exclusively  of  said  apple  cider  or  vinegar, 
into  which  any  foreign  substances,  ingredients,  drugs  or  acids 
have  been  introduced,  as  may  appear  by  proper  tests,  shall  for 


93 


each  such  offence  be  punished  by  fine  of  not  less  than  fifty  nor 
more  than  one  hundred  dollars. 

43.  Every  person  who  manufactures  for  sale,  or  offers  or  Sale  of  vinegar 

J    1  containing  in- 

exposes  for  sale,  any  vinegar  found  upon  proper  tests  to  con-  gradients ™^ri- 
tain  any  preparation  of  lead,  copper,  sulphuric  acid  or  other  Penalty .  ' 
ingredients  injurious  to  health,  shall  for  each  such  offence  be 
punished  by  fine  of  not  less  than  one  hundred  dollars. 

44.  The  mayor  and  aldermen  of  cities  shall,  and  the  select-  Appointment  of 

J  inspectors. 

men  of  towns  may,  annually  appoint  one  or  more  persons  to  be  p.s.,  c.  eo,  §  71. 
inspectors  of  vinegar  for  their  respective  places,  who  shall  be 
sworn  before  entering  upon  their  duties. 

45.  Any  city  or  town  in  which  an  inspector  shall  be  ap-  Compensation 
pointed  under  the  preceding  section,  may  provide  compensation  i88s|%^  § 2" 
for  such  inspector  from  the  time  of  such  appointment,  and  in 

default  of  such  provision  shall  be  liable  in  an  action  at  law  for 
reasonable  compensation  for  services  performed  under  such 
appointment. 

46.  No  person  shall  by  himself,  his  servant  or  agent,  or  as  Sale  of  aduiter- 

t         ated  vinegar. 

the  servant  or  agent  of  any  other  person,  sell,  exchange,  deliver  1884,307,  §1. 
or  have  in  his  custody  or  possession  with  intent  to  sell  or 
exchange,  or  expose  or  offer  for  sale  or  exchange,  any  adulter- 
ated vinegar,  or  label,  brand  or  sell  as  cider  vinegar,  or  as 
apple  vinegar,  any  vinegar  not  the  legitimate  product  of  pure 
apple  juice,  or  not  made  exclusively  from  apple  cider. 

47.  All  vinegars  shall  be  without  artificial  coloring  matter,  standard  of  vin- 
and  shall  have  an  acidity  equivalent  to  the  presence  of  not  less  i885, 150,  §  1. 
than  four  and  one-half  per  cent,  by  weight  of  absolute  acetic 

acid,  and  in  the  case  of  cider  vinegar  shall  contain  in  addition 
not  less  than  two  per  cent,  by  weight  of  cider  vinegar  solids 
upon  full  evaporation  over  boiling  water,  and  if  any  vinegar 
contains  any  artificial  coloring  matter  or  less  than  the  above 
amount  of  acidity,  or  in  the  case  of  cider  vinegar,  if  it  contains 
less  than  the  above  amount  of  acidity  or  of  cider  vinegar  solids, 
it  shall  be  deemed  to  be  adulterated  within  the  meaning  of 
this  act. 

48.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  inspectors  of  milk  who  may  Milk  inspectors 
be  appointed  by  any  city  or  town  to  enforce  the  provisions  of  m*§fi' 
this  act. 

49.  Whoever  violates  any  of  the  provisions  of  this  act  shall  Penalty  for 

-1  L  violation. 

be  punished  by  fine  not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars.  1884, 307,  §4. 


94 


EULES  AND  EMULATIONS 

OF  THE 

STATU  HOARD  OF  HEALTH  RELATIVE  TO  THE  INSPECTION  AND  ANALYSIS 
OF  FOOD  AND  DRUGS. 


1.  The  State  Board  of  Health  shall  appoint  analysts  and 
inspectors,  as  provided  in  section  5  of  chapter  263,  Acts  of 
1882. 

2.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  inspectors  to  procure  samples 
of  drugs  and  articles  of  food  at  such  times  and  places  as  the 
Secretary  shall  direct,  in  the  manner  provided  in  section  6  of 
chapter  263  of  the  Acts  of  1882,'  and  in  section  3  of  chapter 
289  of  the  Acts  of  1884,  and  in  all  acts  amendatory  of  said 
provisions. 

3.  Under  the  direction  of  the  secretary,  one  of  the  inspec- 
tors shall,  for  the  identification  of  samples,  affix  a  number  to 
each  sample  of  food  or  drugs  obtained  by  him,  beginning  with 
number  one,  and  taking  every  alternate  or  odd  number  there- 
after, without  limit ;  and  the  other  inspector  shall  use  and  affix 
each  alternate  or  even  number,  beginning  with  number  two,  and 
following  such  form  of  numbering,  without  limit,  also,  as  far  as 
may  be  directed.  Under  no  circumstances  shall  an  inspector 
convey  any  information  to  an  analyst  as  to  the  source  from 
which  any  sample  was  obtained. 

4.  The  inspectors  shall  keep  records  of  each  sample,  each 
record  to  include  the  following  items  :  — 

(a)  The  inspector's  number. 

(b)  The  date  of  purchase  or  receipt  of  sample. 

(c)  The  character  of  the  sample. 

(d)  The  name  of  the  vender. 

(e)  The  name  of  the  city  or  town  and  street  and  number  where 
the  sample  is  obtained,  and  in  the  case  of  a  licensed  milk  peddler,  the 
number  of  his  license. 

(f)  As  far  as  possible  the  names  of  manufacturers,  producers  or 
wholesalers,  with  marks,  brands  or  labels  stamped  or  printed  upon 
goods. 


95 


5*  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  analysts  so  appointed  to 
determine,  under  the  direction  of  the  secretary,  by  proper 
examination  and  analysis,  whether  articles  of  food  and  drugs, 
manufactured  for  sale,  offered  for  sale,  or  sold  within  this 
Commonwealth,  are  adulterated  within  the  meaning  of  chapter 
263  of  the  Acts  and  Resolves  passed  by  the  General  Court  of 
Massachusetts  in  1882,  and  all  acts  amendatory  thereof,  adul- 
teration being  defined  as  follows,  viz.  :  — 

In  the  case  of  drugs,  (1)  If  sold  under  or  by  a  name  recog- 
nized in  the  United  States  Pharmacopoeia,  it  differs  from  the 
standard  of  strength,  quality  or  purity  laid  down  therein,  unless 
the  order  calls  for  an  article  inferior  to  such  standard,  or  unless 
such  difference  is  made  known  or  so  appears  to  the  purchaser 
at  the  time  of  such  sale.  (2)  If  when  sold  under  or  by  a  name 
not  recognized  in  the  United  States  Pharmacopoeia,  but  which  is 
found  in  some  other  pharmacopoeia  or  standard  work  on  Materia 
Medica,  it  differs  materially  from  the  standard  of  strength, 
quality  or  purity  laid  down  in  such  work.  (3)  If  its  strength 
or  purity  falls  below  the  professed  standard  under  which  it 
is  sold. 

In  case  of  food,  (1)  If  any  substance  or  substances  have 
been  mixed  with  it,  so  as  to  reduce  or  lower  or  injuriously  affect 
its  quality  or  strength.  (2)  If  any  inferior  or  cheaper  sub- 
stance or  substances  have  been  substituted  wholly  or  in  part  for 
it.  (3)  If  any  valuable  constituent  has  been  wholly  or  in  part 
abstracted  from  it.  (4)  If  it  is  an  imitation  of  or  is  sold  under 
the  name  of  another  article.  (5)  If  it  consists  wholly  or  in 
part  of  a  diseased,  decomposed,  putrid  or  rotten  animal  or 
vegetable  substance,  whether  manufactured  or  not,  or  in  the 
case  of  milk,  if  it  is  the  produce  of  a  diseased  animal.  (6)  If 
it  is  colored,  coated,  polished  or  powdered,  whereby  damage  is 
concealed,  or  if  it  is  made  to  appear  of  better  or  of  greater 
value  than  it  really  is.  (7)  If  it  contains  any  added  poisonous 
ingredient,  or  any  ingredient  which  may  render  it  injurious  to 
the  health  of  the  person  consuming  it. 

6.  It  shall  also  be  the  duty  of  the  analysts  to  receive  such 
specimens  of  food  and  drugs  for  analysis  as  may  be  delivered 
to  them  by  the  secretary,  or  by  the  inspectors,  and  to  examine 
the  same.  To  avoid,  as  far  as  possible,  all  suggestion  or  danger 
of  specimens  having  been  tampered  with,  each  analyst  shall 
keep  each  specimen  in  his  possession  in  a  suitable  and  secure 


96 


place,  labelled  in  such  a  manner  as  to  prevent  any  person  from 
having  access  to  the  same  without  the  knowledge  and  presence 
of  the  analyst. 

Analyses  of  perishable  articles  should  be  made  promptly  after 
they  are  received. 

7.  An  analyst  shall  give  no  information,  under  any  circum- 
stances, regarding  the  result  of  any  analysis,  to  any  person 
except  to  the  secretary  of  the  board,  prior  to  any  trial  in  court 
in  reference  to  such  analysis. 

The  analysts  shall  carefully  avoid  any  error  regarding  the 
inspector's  number  attached  to  each  sample,  and  shall  report 
the  results  of  their  work  in  detail  to  the  secretary. 

In  the  case  of  all  articles  having  a  numerical  standard  pro- 
vided by  statute,  the  result  of  the  analysis  should  show  their 
relation  to  such  standard. 

8.  Before  beginning  the  analysis  of  any  sample,  the  analyst 
shall  reserve  a  portion,  which  shall  be  sealed,  and  in  the  event 
of  finding  the  portion  analyzed  to  be  adulterated,  he  shall  pre- 
serve the  sealed  portion,  so  that  in  case  of  a  complaint  against 
any  person  the  last  named  portion  may,  on  application,  be 
delivered  by  the  secretary  to  the  defendant  or  to  his  attorney. 

9.  Each  analyst  shall  present  to  the  secretary,  on  the 
Thursday  before  the  first  Saturday  of  each  month,  a  summary 
of  the  analyses  made  by  him  during  the  previous  month. 

Each  analyst  shall  also  present,  on  or  before  the  first  of 
January  of  each  year,  an  annual  report  of  the  work  done  for 
the  year  ending  on  the  30th  of  September  preceding. 

10.  The  secretary  shall  have  charge  of  the  reports  of 
analyses,  and  shall  cause  cases  founded  on  such  reports  to 
be  submitted  to  the  courts  for  prosecution. 

In  each  case  of  a  retailer,  and  of  every  dealer  not  a  manufact- 
urer or  producer,  he  may,  if  the  party  has  not  been  previously 
complained  of  in  court,  issue  a  notice  or  warning  of  any  viola- 
tion of  the  law  relative  to  the  adulteration  of  food  and  drugs, 
and  of  the  offender's  liability  to  prosecution  on  a  repetition  of 
the  sale. 

1 1 .  Should  the  result  obtained  by  any  analyst  be  questioned 
in  any  given  case,  another  analyst  shall  repeat  the  analysis, 
unless  otherwise  instructed  by  the  Board,  provided  a  sufficient 
sum  to  meet  the  expense  of  the  analysis  be  deposited  with  the 
Secretary  by  any  interested  party  feeling  aggrieved,  which  sum 


97 


will  not  be  returned  unless  the  second  analysis  fails  to  confirm 
the  first  in  essential  particulars. 

12.  Any  appeal  from  the  decision  of  an  analyst  shall  be 
filed  with  the  secretary,  who  shall  report  it,  and  any  matter  in 
controversy,  to  the  board,  giving  his  judgment  thereon,  and  the 
Board  shall  supervise  and  control  the  action  of  its  officers  in 
executing  the  law. 

13.  Where  standards  of  strength,  quality  or  purity  are  not 
fixed  by  the  act,  the  analysts  shall  present  to  the  secretary  such 
standard  as  in  their  judgment  should  be  fixed,  and  the  secretary 
shall  report  the  same  to  the  board  for  its  action.  The  standards 
set  by  the  British  Society  of  Public  Analysts  will  be  followed, 
as  nearly  as  practicable,  until  otherwise  ordered. 

14.  Whenever  a  drug  or  preparation,  not  described  in  a 
national  pharmacopoeia  or  other  standard  work  on  Materia 
Medica,  shall  be  manufactured,  offered  for  sale  or  used  in  this 
State,  the  standard  of  such  drug,  and  the  standard  and  propor- 
tion of  the  ingredients  of  such  preparation,  and  the  range  of 
variability  from  such  standard  or  standards,  shall  be  ascertained 
by  the  analysts,  who  shall  report  the  same  through  the  Secretary 
to  the  Board. 

15.  The  analysts  shall  occupy  such  time  in  the  performance 
of  their  respective  duties  as  a  reasonable  compliance  with  the 
terms  of  the  statute  shall  require,  and  shall  be  present  one  hour 
of  each  day,  at  such  time  of  the  day  and  at  such  place  as  shall 
be  designated  by  the  Board,  to  meet  the  convenience  of  inter- 
ested parties  and  the  public. 


98 


LAWS 

CONCERNING  THE  REGISTRATION  OF  BIRTHS, 
MARRIAGES  AND  DEATHS. 


City  and  town 
clerks  to  record 
births,  mar- 
riages and 
deaths. 

P.S.,  c.32,  §  1. 

1(>3J) 
1  785 
1844 
1849 


1887,  202,  §  5. 
1890,  402. 


Parents  and 
others  to  give 
notice  of  births 
and  deaths. 
P.S.,  c.  32,  §2. 


OF  THE  REGISTRY  AND  RETURN  OF  BIRTHS,   MARRIAGES  AND 
DEATHS. 

1.  The  clerk  of  each  city  and  town  shall  receive  or  obtain, 
and  record  and  index,  the  following  facts  concerning  the  births, 
marriages  and  deaths  therein,  separately  numbering  and  record- 
ing the  same  in  the  order  in  which  he  receives  them,  designating 
in  separate  columns  as  follows  :  — 

In  the  record  of  births,  the  date  of  birth,  the  place  of  birth, 
the  name  of  the  child,  (if  it  has  any,)  the  sex  and  color  of 
the  child,  the  names  and  the  places  of  birth  of  the  parents,  the 
occupation  of  the  father,  the  residence  of  the  parents,  and  the 
date  of  the  record. 

In  the  record  of  marriages,  the  date  of  the  marriage,  the  place 
of  marriage,  the  name,  residence,  and  official  station  of  the 
person  by  whom  married,  the  names  and  the  places  of  birth  of 
the  parties,  the  residence  of  each,  the  age  and  color  of  each, 
the  condition  of  each,  (whether  single  or  widowed,)  the  occu- 
pation, the  names  of  the  parents,  and  the  date  of  the  record. 

In  the  record  of  deaths,  the  date  of  the  death,  the  name  of 
the  deceased,  the  sex,  the  color,  the  condition,  (whether  single, 
widowed,  or  married,)  the  age,  the  residence,  the  occupation, 
the  place  of  death,  the  place  of  birth,  the  names  and  places  of 
birth  of  the  parents,  the  disease  or  cause  of  death,  the  place  of 
burial,  if  the  deceased  was  a  married  woman  her  maiden  name 
and  the  name  of  her  husband,  and  the  maiden  name  of  the 
mother  of  any  deceased  person,  and  the  date  of  the  record. 

2.  Parents  shall  give  notice  to  the  clerk  of  their  city  or  town 
of  the  births  and  deaths  of  their  children  ;  every  householder 
shall  give  like  notice  of  every  birth  and  death  happening  in  his 
house  ;  the  eldest  person  next  of  kin  shall  give  such  notice  of 


99 


the  death  of  his  kindred;  the  keeper  of  a  workhouse,  house  1795 
of  correction,  prison,  hospital,  or  almshouse,  except  the  state 
almshouse,  and  the  master  or  other  commanding  officer  of  a  ship,  1839 
shall  give  like  notice  of  every  birth  and  death  happening  among  1855 
the  persons  under  his  charge.    Whoever  neglects  to  give  such 
notice  for  the  space  of  six  months  after  a  birth  or  death  shall 
forfeit  a  sum  not  exceeding  five  dollars. 

3.  A  physician  who  has  attended  a  person  during  his  last  ^ehr[ffyiaJJct0 
illness  shall,  when  requested,  forthwith  furnish  for  registration,  jsgjj,  63. 

18o8,  oOuj  §  1. 

a  certificate  stating,  to  the  best  of  his  knowledge  and  belief, 

the  name  of  the  deceased,  his  age,  the  disease  of  which  he 

died,  the  duration  of  his  last  sickness,  and  the  date  of  his 

decease.    If  a  physician  neglects  or  refuses  to  make  a  certifi-  p6^11^^  §3 

cate  as  aforesaid,  he  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  not  exceeding 

fifty  dollars. 

4.  Every  sexton,  undertaker,  or  other  person  having  charge  Sextons  and 

.  others  to  make 

of  a  burial-ground,  and  every  undertaker  or  superintendent  of  returns  to  city 
burials  having  charge  of  the  funeral  rites  preliminary  to  the  in-  p.s.,  c.  32,  §  4.' 
terment  of  a  human  body,  shall  forthwith  obtain  and  return  to  1844 
the  clerk  of  the  city  or  town  in  which  the  deceased  resided,  or 
the  death  occurred,  the  facts  required  by  this  chapter  to  be  1849 
recorded  by  said  officer  concerning  the  deceased,  and  the  person 
making  such  return  shall  receive  from  his  city  or  town  the  fee 
of  twenty-five  cents  therefor.    All  such  returns  shall  be  pre-  i887,  202,  §  2. 
served  by  said  clerk  or  registrar,  and  filed,  arranged  and  in- 
dexed conveniently  for  examination  and  reference. 

;">.    No  undertaker,  sexton  or  other  person  shall  bury  in  a  Burial  or  re- 
city  or  town  or  remove  therefrom  the  body  of  a  deceased  person  noTano4edtiii 
until  he  has  received  a  permit  so  to  do  from  the  board  of  health  be'e^ven!^8 
or  its  duly  appointed  agent,  or,  if  there  is  no  board  of  health  in  fssli'soef^  I.5' 
such  city  or  town,  from  the  city  or  town  clerk.    No  such  permit 
shall  be  issued  until  there  has  been  delivered  to  such  board,  or  1878 
agent  or  clerk,  as  the  case  may  be,  a  satisfactory  written  state- 
ment containing  the  facts  required   by  this  chapter  to  be 
returned  and  recorded,  together  with  the  certificate  of  the 
attending  physician,  if  any,  as  required  by  section  3  of  this 
chapter,  or  in  lieu  thereof  a  certificate  as  hereinafter  provided. 
If  there  is  no  attending  physician,  or  if  the  certificate  of  the 
attending  physician  cannot  be  obtained,  for  good  and  sufficient 
reasons,  early  enough  for  the  purpose,  the  chairman  of  the 
board  of  health  or  any  physician  employed  by  a  city  or  town 


100 


Penalty. 


Undertakers, 
how  licensed. 
P.  S.,  c.  32,  §  6. 


1872 


Physicians,  etc., 
to  return 
monthly  lists  of 
births. 

P.S.,c.  32,  §7. 
1883,  158. 
1889.  288. 


1880 


Clerks  to  give 
notice  that  they 
will  furnish 
blanks. 

P.  8.,  c.  32,  §  8. 


Penalty  for 
neglecting  to 
report. 

P.S.,  c.  32,  §9. 


Clerks  to  send 
copies  of  records 
to  secretary  of 
state. 

P.S..C.  32,  §  10. 

1844 
1849 

Record  to  be 

evidence. 

P.  8.,  c.  32,  §  11. 


for  tbe  purpose  shall,  upon  request  of  said  board,  agent  or 
clerk,  make  such  certificate  as  is  required  of  the  attending 
physician  ;  and  in  case  of  death  by  violence  the  medical  examiner 
shall,  if  requested,  make  the  same.  When  such  satisfactory 
statement  and  certificate  are  delivered  to  the  board  of  health  or 
to  its  agent,  the  board  or  agent  shall  forthwith  countersign  and 
transmit  the  same  to  the  clerk  or  registrar  for  registration.  The 
person  to  whom  the  permit  is  so  given  shall  thereafter  furnish 
for  registration  any  other  information  as  to  the  deceased  or  to 
the  manner  and  cause  of  the  death,  as  the  clerk  or  registrar  may 
require.  Any  person  violating  any  of  the  provisions  of  this 
section  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  not  exceeding  fifty  dollars. 

0.  The  boards  of  health  of  towns  and  the  mayor  and  alder- 
men of  cities  shall,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  July  in  each 
year,  license  a  suitable  number  of  undertakers  to  take  charge 
of  the  funeral  rites  preliminary  to  the  interment  of  a  human 
body. 

7.  Physicians  and  midwives  shall,  on  or  before  the  fifth  day 
of  each  month,  report  to  the  clerk  of  each  city  or  town,  a  cor- 
rect list  of  all  children,  born  therein  during  the  month  next 
preceding,  at  whose  birth  they  were  present,  stating  the  date 
and  place  of  each  birth,  the  name  of  the  child  (if  it  has  any), 
the  sex  and  color  of  the  child,  the  name,  place  of  birth  and 
residence  of  the  parents,  and  the  occupation  of  the  father. 
The  fee  of  the  physician  or  midwife  shall  be  twenty-five  cents 
for  each  birth  so  reported,  and  shall  be  paid  by  the  city  or 
town  in  which  the  report  is  made. 

8.  The  clerk  of  each  city  and  town  shall  give  public  notice 
that  he  is  prepared  to  furnish,  to  all  physicians  and  midwives 
applying  therefor,  blanks  for  returns  under  the  preceding  sec- 
tion. 

9.  Any  physician  or  midwife  neglecting  to  report  such  list 
for  ten  days  after  it  is  due  shall  for  each  offence  forfeit  a  sum 
not  exceeding  twenty  dollars. 

10.  The  clerk  of  each  city  and  town  shall  annually,  on  or 
before  the  first  day  of  March,  transmit  to  the  secretary  of  the 
commonwealth  certified  copies  of  the  records  of  the  births, 
marriages,  and  deaths  which  have  occurred  therein  during  the 
year  ending  on  the  last  day  of  the  preceding  December. 

11.  The  record  of  the  town  clerk  relative  to  a  birth,  mar- 
riage, or  death,  shall  be  prima  facie  evidence,  in  legal  proceed- 


101 


ings,  of  the  facts  recorded.    A  certificate,  signed  by  the  town 

clerk  for  the  time  being,  shall  be  admissible  as  evidence  cf  , 

such  record. 

12.  The  clerk  of  each  city  and  town,  (except  in  such  cities  Fees  of  clerks 
and  towns  as  choose  a  registrar,  in  which  cases  the  provisions  ? or  leSSiag^ 
of  this  section  shall  apply  to  the  registrar,)  for  receiving  or  e\s!,  c.32,  §  12. 
obtaining,  recording,  indexing,  and  returning  the  facts  relating 

to  marriages,  births,  and  deaths  occurring  therein,  shall  be 
entitled  to  receive  from  the  city  or  town  for  each  marriage,  18GG 
fifteen  cents ;   for  each  birth,  fifty  cents ;    for  each  death 
returned  to  him  by  the  persons  specified  in  sections  two,  three,  1873 
and  four,  twenty  cents  for  each  of  the  first  twenty  entries,  and 
ten  cents  for  each  subsequent  entry  ;  for  each  death  not  so 
returned,  but  by  him  obtained  and  recorded,  thirty-five  cents, 
as  the  same  shall  be  certified  by  the  secretary  of  the  common- 
wealth ;  but  a  city  or  town  containing  more  than  ten  thousand 
inhabitants  may  limit  the  aggregate  compensation  allowed  to 
their  clerk  or  registrar.    He  shall  forfeit  not  less  than  twenty  reuaity. 
nor  more  than  one  hundred  dollars  for  each  refusal  or  neglect 
to  perform  any  duty  required  of  him  by  sections  one,  two, 
three,  four,  ten,  twelve,  fourteen,  sixteen,  and  eighteen. 

13.  The  superintendent  of  the  state  almshouse  shall  obtain,  Superintendent 
record,  and  make  return  of  the  facts  in  relation  to  the  births  h  ouse  to  record 
and  deaths  which  occur  in  his  institution,  in  like  manner  as  is  etc.reU1Q  a°  8' 
required  of  town  clerks.    The  clerk  of  a  town  in  which  such  cierk  of  town 

*  exempt* 

almshouse  is  located  shall,  in  relation  to  the  births  and  deaths  p.s.,  c.  32,  §  13. 

of  persons  in  said  almshouse,  be  exempt  from  the  duties  other-  1855 
wise  required  of  him  by  this  chapter. 

14.  The  secretary  shall  at  the  expense  of  the  common-  Secretary  to 

,..       furnish  blank 

wealth  prepare  and  furnish  to  the  clerks  of  the  several  cities  books  and 
and  towns,  and  to  the  superintendent  of  the  state  almshouse,  p.gjfc. 32,  §  14. 
blank  books  of  suitable  quality  and  size  to  be  used  as  books  of 
record  under  this  chapter,  blank  books  for  indexes  thereto,  and  1844 
blank  forms  for  returns,  on  paper  of  uniform  size  ;  and  shall 
accompany  the  same  with  such  instructions  and  explanations  as  1849 
may  be  necessary  and  useful.    City  and  town  clerks  shall  make 
such  distribution  of  blank  forms  of  returns  furnished  by  the 
secretary  as  he  shall  direct. 

15.  The  secretary  shall  cause  the  returns  received  by  him  Secretary  to 

y  v  cause  returns 

for  each  year  to  be  bound  together  in  one  or  more  volumes  to  be  bound  and 

.  report  results  to 

with  indexes  thereto.    He  shall  prepare  from  the  returns  such  general  court. 

1      1  P.S.,  c.  32,  §  15. 


102 


1844 
1849 

Registrars  may 
be  chosen  in 
certain  cases. 
P.  S.,  c.  32,  §  16, 

1849 


Secretary  to 
prosecute  for 
penalty. 

P.S.,  c.  32,  §  17. 


Cities  or  towns 
may  make  rules 
to  enforce  regis- 
tration. 

P.  S.,  c.  32,  §18. 

Clerk  or  regis- 
trar to  make 
certified  copies 
of  certain 
records  and 
send  to  other 
cities  and 
towns. 
1889,  208. 


Physicians  to 
certify  primary 
and  secondary 
causes  of  death 
in  case  of  sol- 
diers and 
sailors. 
1889,  224. 


tabr.lVir  results  as  will  render  them  of  practical  utility,  make 
;vpcit  thereof  annually  to  the  general  court,  and  do  all  other 
acts  necessary  to  carry  into  effect  the  provisions  of  this  chapter. 

16.  A  city  or  town  containing  more  than  ten  thousand  in- 
habitants may  choose  a  person  other  than  the  clerk  to  be 
registrar,  who  shall  be  sworn,  and  to  whom  all  the  provisions  of 
this  chapter  concerning  clerks  shall  apply.  The  returns  and 
notices  required  to  be  made  and  given  to  clerks  shall  be  made 
and  given  to  such  registrar  under  like  penalties. 

17.  The  secretary  of  the  commonwealth  shall  prosecute,  by 
an  action  of  tort  in  the  name  of  the  commonwealth,  for  the 
recovery  of  any  penalty  or  forfeiture  imposed  by  sections  two, 
three,  twelve,  sixteen,  and  eighteen. 

18.  A  city  or  town  may  make  rules  and  regulations  to 
enforce  the  provisions  of  this  chapter,  or  to  secure  a  more 
perfect  registration  of  births,  marriages,  and  deaths  therein. 

19.  The  clerk  or  registrar  of  each  city  and  town  shall  on 
the  first  day  of  each  month  make  a  certified  copy  of  the  record 
of  all  deaths  and  births  recorded  in  the  books  of  said  city  or 
town  during  the  previous  month,  whenever  the  deceased  person 
or  the  parents  of  the  child  born,  were  resident  in  any  other  city 
or  town  in  this  Commonwealth  at  the  time  of  said  death  or  birth  ; 
and  shall  transmit  said  certified  copies  to  the  clerk  or  registrar 
of  the  city  or  town  in  which  such  deceased  person  or  parents 
were  resident  at  the  time  of  said  death  or  birth,  stating  in 
addition  the  name  of  the  street  and  number  of  the  house,  if 
any,  where  such  deceased  person  or  parents  so  resided,  when- 
ever the  same  can  be  ascertained ;  and  the  clerk  or  registrar  so 
receiving  such  certified  copies  shall  record  the  same  in  the  books 
kept  for  recording  deaths  or  births.  Such  certified  copies  shall 
be  made  upon  blanks  to  be  furnished  for  that  purpose  by  the 
secretary  of  the  Commonwealth. 

20.  A  physician  who  has  attended  a  person  in  his  last  illness 
in  furnishing  a  certificate  for  the  purposes  of  registration  as 
required  by  section  three  of  chapter  thirty-two  of  the  Public 
Statutes  shall,  in  case  the  deceased  was  a  soldier  or  a  sailor 
who  served  in  the  war  of  the  rebellion,  give  both  the  primary 
and  the  secondary  or  immediate  cause  of  death  as  nearly  as  he 
can  state  the  same.  If  a  physician  refuses  or  neglects  to  make 
such  certificate  he  shall  forfeit  to  the  treasurer  the  sum  of  ten 
dollars  for  the  use  of  the  town  in  which  he  resides. 


103 


21.  Every  justice  of  the  peace,  minister,  and  clerk  or  keeper  £errm°"g  JJJJ. 
of  the  records  of  a  meeting  wherein  marriages  among  Friends  riages  to  keep 

0  °  °  records  and 

or  Quakers  are  solemnized,  shall  make  a  record  of  each  mar-  make  returns. 

^  P.  S.,c.  145,  §24. 

riage  solemnized  before  him,  or  in  such  meeting,  and  of  all 

facts  relating  to  the  marriage  which  are  required  by  law  to  be  1834 

recorded,    lie  shall  also,  between  the  first  and  tenth  days  of 

each  month,  return  a  copy  of  all  such  records  for  the  month  1844 

next  preceding  to  the  clerk  or  registrar  of  the  city  or  town  in 

which  the  marriage  was  solemnized,  and  shall,  when  one  or 

both  of  the  parties  to  the  marriage  resided  in  a  city  or  town 

other  than  that  in  which  the  marriage  was  solemnized,  return  a 

copy  of  the  record  of  such  marriage  to  the  clerk  or  registrar  of 

the  city  or  town  in  which  either  party  resided,  and  to  the  clerks 

or  registrars  of  both  cities  or  towns  when  the  parties  resided  in 

different  places.    All  marriages  so  returned  shall  be  recorded  Penalty. 

by  the  clerk  or  registrar,  and  every  person  neglecting  to  make 

the  returns  required  by  this  section  shall  forfeit  for  each  neglect 

not  less  than  twenty  nor  more  than  one  hundred  dollars.    All  Returns  to  be 

^  filed  for  refer- 

such  returns  shall  be  preserved  by  said  clerk  or  registrar,  and  ence. 

1  J  &  1887,  202,  §  3. 

filed,  arranged  and  indexed  conveniently  for  examination  and 
reference. 

22.  The  record  of  a  marriage,  made  and  kept  as  prescribed  Record  of  mar- 

°  1  A  riage  to  be  evi- 

by  law  by  the  person  before  whom  the  marriage  has  been  dence  thereof . 

,         .      *,  i       ,        ,     i  .  .  P.  S.,  c.145,  §29. 

solemnized,  or  by  the  clerk  or  registrar  of  a  city  or  town,  or  a  R  g 
copy  of  such  record  duly  certified,  shall  be  received  in  all  courts 
and  places  as  presumptive  evidence  of  such  marriage. 

23.  When  a  marriage  has  been  solemnized  by  a  consul  or  certificate  from 
diplomatic  agent  of  the  United  States,  a  copy  of  the  record  or  evidence. 

a  certificate  from  such  consul  or  agent  shall  be  presumptive  p-8  'c-145'§30- 
evidence  of  such  marriage. 

24.  The  provisions  of  sections  two  and  three  of  chapter  two  1887,202,  §4. 
hundred  and  two  of  the  tfcts  of  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and 
eighty-seven  shall  apply  to  all  returns  of  marriages  and  deaths 

now  in  the  offices  of  town  and  city  clerks  and  city  registrars. 

25.  A  city  or  town  may  cause  to  be  carefully  copied,  such  a  city  or  town 
of  its  records  as  relate  to  grants  of  land,  to  divisions  and  HIS  to  be  rec 
allotments  of  land  made  by  the  original  proprietors  of  the  p.Ps?,dc.  37,  §  5. 

•  •  1887  *^0'^  §  1 

township,  or  to  easements,  private  rights,  or  ways,  and  also      •    '8  ' 
any  records  of  births,  deaths  and  marriages  kept  by  such  city  1857 
or  towrn,  or  by  a  parish  within  the  same. 


104 


Returns  of 
statistics  of 
divorce  to  be 
made  by  clerks 
of  courts  to 
secretary  of 
state  annually. 
1882,  194,  §  1. 


Secretary  to 
furnish  blanks. 
1882,  194,  §  2. 


RETURNS  OF  DIVORCES. 

26.  The  clerks  of  courts  for  the  several  counties,  and  of  the 
supreme  judicial  court  for  the  county  of  Suffolk,  shall,  annually, 
during  the  month  of  February,  make  returns  to  the  secretary  of 
the  Commonwealth  in  relation  to  libels  for  divorce  in  their 
respective  counties  for  the  calendar  year  next  preceding.  Such 
returns  shall  specify  the  following  details :  the  number  of  libels 
pending  at  the  beginning  of  the  year  ;  the  number  of  libels  filed 
within  the  year ;  the  number  of  divorces  granted ;  the  number 
of  divorces  refused  ;  the  number  of  libels  contested  ;  the  num- 
ber of  libels  uncontested ;  the  alleged  cause  for  divorce  in  each 
case  ;  the  sex  of  the  libellant  and  the  length  of  time  the  parties 
have  been  married  ;  and  the  number  of  cases  in  which  notice 
has  been  given  to  the  district-attorney  for  prosecution  under 
section  forty-four  of  chapter  one  hundred  and  forty-six  of  the 
Public  Statutes,  and  the  criminal  offence  for  which  divorce  has 
been  granted  in  such  cases. 

27.  The  secretary  shall  furnish  the  said  clerks  of  courts  with 
suitable  blank  forms  for  the  returns  provided  for  in  the  preced- 


to  prepare  an 
abstract  and 
publish  in 
registration 
report. 
1S82,  194,  S  3. 


28.  The  secretary  shall  annually  prepare  from  said  returns 
full  and  complete  abstracts  and  tabular  statements  of  the  facts 
relating  to  divorces  for  each  county,  and  embody  such  abstracts 
and  statements,  with  necessary  analyses,  in  the  annual  reports 
to  the  legislature  relating  to  the  registry  of  births,  deaths  and 
marriages. 


105 


TILE  INQUEST  LAWS. 

[The  following  code  supersedes  the  coroner  laws,  which  were  repealed  in  1877,  abolish- 
ing the  office  of  coroner.] 


DUTIES  OF  MEDICAL  EXAMINERS. 


iers. 

P.S.,  c.  26,  §  1. 


Number  to  be 
appointed  in 


1 .  The  governor  shall  nominate  and  by  and  with  the  advice  Appointment  of 
and  consent  Of  the  council  shall  appoint,  in  each  couuty,  able  nT' ' 
and  discreet  men,  learned  in  the  science  of  medicine,  to  be 
medical  examiners  in  such  county  ;  and  every  such  nomination 
shall  be  made  at  least  seven  days  prior  to  the  appointment. 

2.  The  number  of  medical  examiners,  appoiuted  as  provided 
in  the  preceding  section,  shall  be  as  follows  :  —  «»ch  ojjjjn*y:0 

For  the  county  of  Barnstable,  three  examiners,  being  one  in  Barnstable 
each  of  the  three  districts  into  which  said  county  is  divided  for  Couuty- 
said  purpose  :  namely,  district  one,  composed  of  the  towns  of 
Harwich,  Dennis,  Yarmouth,  Brewster,  Chatham,  Orleans,  and 
Eastham  ;  district  two,  of  the  towns  of  Barnstable,  Sandwich, 
Mashpee,  and  Falmouth ;  and  district  three,  of  the  towns  of 
Provincetown,  Truro  and  Wellfleet. 

For  the  county  of  Berkshire,  four  examiners,  being  one  in  Berkshire 
each  of  the  four  districts  into  which  said  county  is  divided  for  Coumy' 
said  purpose  :  namely,  district  one,  composed  of  the  towns  of 
Williamstown,  Clarksburg,  Adams,  North  Adams,  Florida, 
Savoy,  New  Ashford,  and  Cheshire  ;  district  two,  of  the  towns 
of  Lanesborough,  Windsor,  Pittsfield,  Dalton,  Hinsdale,  Peru, 
and  Hancock  ;  district  three,  of  the  towns  of  Richmond,  Lenox, 
Washington,  Becket,  Lee,  Stockbridge,  Tyringham,  and  Otis  ; 
and  district  four,  of  the  towns  of  West  Stockbridge,  Alford, 
Great  Barrington,  Monterey,  Sandisfield,  New  Marlborough, 
Sheffield,  Egremont,  and  Mount  Washington. 


106 


Dukes  County. 


Essex  Couuty. 


Bristol  County.  For  the  county  of  Bristol,  four  examiners,  being  one  in  each 
of  the  four  districts  into  which  said  county  is  divided  for  said 
purpose :  namely,  district  one,  composed  of  the  towns  of 
Attleborough,  Seekonk,  Norton,  Mansfield,  and  liehoboth ; 
district  two,  of  the  city  of  Taunton  and  the  towns  of  Raynham, 
Easton,  Berkley,  and  Dighton  ;  district  three,- of  the  city  of 
Fall  River  and  the  towns  of  Somerset,  Swanzey,  Freetown,  and 
Westport ;  and  district  four,  of  the  city  of  New  Bedford  and 
the  towns  of  Dartmouth,  Fairhaven,  and  Acushnet. 

For  the  county  of  Dukes  County,  three  examiners,  being  one 
in  each  of  the  three  districts  into  which  said  county  is  divided 
for  said  purpose  :  namely,  district  one,  composed  of  the  towns 
of  Edgartown  and  Cottage  City  ;  district  two,  of  the  towns  of 
Tisbury  and  Gosnold  ;  and  district  three,  of  the  towns  of  Chil- 
mark  and  Gay  Head. 

For  the  county  of  Essex,  ten  examiners,  being  one  in  each  of 
the  ten  districts  into  which  said  county  is  divided  for  said  pur- 
pose :  namely,  district  one,  composed  of  the  city  of  Gloucester 
and  the  town  of  Rockport ;  district  two,  of  the  towns  of  Ipswich, 
Rowley,  Hamilton,  and  Essex  ;  district  three,  of  the  city  of  New- 
buryport  and  the  towns  of  Newbury,  West  Newbury,  Amesbury, 
and  Salisbury  ;  district  four,  of  the  city  of  Haverhill  and  the 
towns  of  Bradford  and  Merrimac ;  district  five,  of  the  city  of 
Lawrence  and  the  towns  of  Methuen,  Andover,  and  North 
Andover ;  district  six,  of  the  toWns  of  Georgetown,  Boxford, 
Topsfield,  and  Groveland ;  district  seven,  of  the  towns  of 
Beverly,  Wenham,  and  Manchester  ;  district  eight,  of  the  towns 
of  Peabody,  Danvers,  Middleton,  and  Lynnfield  ;  district  nine, 
of  the  city  of  Lynn  and  the  towns  of  Saugus,  Nahant,  and 
Swampscott ;  and  district  ten,  of  the  city  of  Salem  and  the 
town  of  Marblehead. 

For  the  county  of  Franklin,  three  examiners,  being  one  in  each 
of  the  three  districts  into  which  said  county  is  divided  for  said 
purpose  :  namely,  the  eastern  district,  composed  of  the  towns 
of  Bernardston,  Erving,  Gill,  Greenfield,  Leverett,  Montague, 
Northfield,  Shutesbury,  and  Sunderland ;  the  western  district, 
composed  of  the  towns  of  Ashfield,  Buckland,  Charlemont, 
Colrain,  Conway,  Deerfield,  Hawley,  Heath,  Leyden,  Monroe, 
1884,321,  §§  1,2.  Rowe,  Shelburne,  and  Whately  ;  and  the  northern  district,  com- 
posed of  the  towns  of  Orange,  Warwick,  New  Salem  and  Wendell. 
County6"  ^or  ^e  county  °^  Hampden,  four  examiners,  being  one  in 


Franklin 
County. 


107 


each  of  the  four  districts  into  which  said  county  is  divided  for 
said  purpose  :  namely,  district  one,  composed  of  the  towns  of 
Brimfield,  Holland,  Palmer,  Monson,  and  Wales  ;  district  two, 
of  the  city  of  Springfield  and  the  towns  of  Agawam,  Chicopee, 
Longmeadow,  Ludlow,  West  Springfield,  Wilbraham,  and 
Hampden  ;  district  three,  of  the  city  of  Holyoke  ;  and  district 
four,  of  the  towns  of  Blandford,  Chester,  Granville,  Mont- 
gomery, Russell,  Southwick,  Tolland,  and  AVestfield. 

For  the  county  of  Hampshire,  four  examiners,  being  one  in  Hampshire 
each  of  the  four  districts  into  which  said  county  is  divided  for 
said  purpose  :  namely,  district  one,  composed  of  the  towns  of 
Chesterfield,  Cummington,  Goshen,  Hatfield,  Northampton, 
Plainfield,  and  Williamsburgh  ;  district  two,  of  the  towns  of 
Easthampton,  Huntington,  Middlefield,  Southampton,  West- 
ham  pton,  and  Worthington  ;  district  three,  of  the  towns  of 
Amherst,  Granby,  Hadley,  Pelham,  and  South  Hadley  ;  and 
district  four,  of  the  towns  of  Belchertown,  Enfield,  Greenwich, 
Prescott,  and  Ware. 

For  the  county  of  Middlesex,  ten  examiners,  being  One  in  Middlesex 
each  of  the  ten  districts  into  which  said  county  is  divided  for  Couuty* 
said  purpose  :  namely,  district  one,  composed  of  the  city  of 
Cambridge  and  the  towns  of  Belmont  and  Arlington  ;  district  two, 
of  the  cities  of  Maiden  find  Somerville  and  the  towns  of  Everett 
and  Medford  ;  district  three,  of  the  towns  of  Melrose,  Stone- 
ham,  Wakefield,  Wilmington,  Reading,  and  North  Reading  ;  dis- 
trict four,  of  the  towns  of  Woburn,  Winchester,  Lexington,  and 
Burlington  ;  district  five,  of  the  city  of  Lowell  and  the  towns  of 
Dracut,  Tewksbury,  Billerica,  Chelmsford,  and  Tyngsborough  ; 
district  six,  of  the  towns  of  Concord,  Carlisle,  Bedford,  Lincoln, 
Littleton,  Acton,  and  Boxborough ;  district  seven,  of  the  city 
of  Newton  and  the  towns  of  Watertown,  Waltham,  and  Weston  ; 
district  eight,  of  the  towns  of  Framingham,  Wayland,  Natick,  . 
Sherborn,  Holliston,  Hopkinton,  and  Ashland  ;  district  nine,  of 
the  towns  of  Marlborough,  Hudson,  Maynard,  Stow,  and  Sud- 
bury ;  and  district  ten,  of  the  towns  of  Ayer,  Groton,  Westford, 
Dunstable,  Pepperell,  Shirley,  Townsend,  and  Ashby. 

For  the  county  of  Nantucket,  one  examiner.  Nantucket 

Comity. 

For  the  county  of  Norfolk,  nine  examiners,  being  one  in  each  Norfolk  County, 
of  the  nine  districts  into  which  said  county  is  divided  for  said 
purpose  :  namely,  district  one,  composed  of  the  towns  of  Ded- 
ham,  Needham,  Wellesley,  Norwood,  and  Dover ;  district  two, 


108 


Plymouth 
Couuty. 
1886,  74. 


of  the  towns  of  Hyde  Park  and  Milton ;  district  three,  of  the 
towns  of  Quincy  and  Randolph  ;  district  four,  of  the  towns  of 
Weymouth,  Braintree,  and  Holbrook  ;  district  five,  of  the  towns 
of  Stoughton,  Canton,  Walpole,  and  Sharon  ;  district  six,  of 
the  towns  of  Franklin,  Foxborough,  and  Wrentham ;  district 
seven,  of  the  towns  of  Med  way,  Medlield,  Norfolk,  and  Belling- 
ham  ;  district  eight,  of  the  town  of  Brookline  ;  and  district 
nine,  of  the  town  of  Cohasset. 

For  the  county  of  Plymouth,  five  examiners,  being  one  in  each 
of  the  five  districts  into  which  said  county  is  divided  for  said 
purpose  :  namely,  district  one,  composed  of  the  city  of  Brock- 
ton and  the  towns  of  West  Bridgewater,  East  Bridgewater, 
Bridgewater,  and  South  Abington  ;  district  two,  of  the  towns 
of  Abington,  Rockland,  Hanover,  Hanson,  South  Scituate,  and 
Pembroke  ;  district  three,  of  the  towns  of  Plymouth,  Halifax, 
Kingston,  Plympton,  and  Duxbury ;  district  four,  of  the 
towns  of  Middleborough,  Wareham,  Mattapoisett,  Carver, 
Rochester,  Lakeville,  and  Marion.;  and  district  five,  of  the 
towns  of  Hingham,  Hull,  Scituate,  and  Marshfield. 
Suffolk  county.     For  the  county  of  Suffolk,  two  examiners. 

For  the  county  of  Worcester,  eleven  examiners,  being  one  in 
each  of  the  eleven  districts  into  which  said  county  is  divided 
for  said  purpose  :  namely,  district  one,  composed  of  the  towns 
of  Athol,  Petersham,  Phillipston,  and  Royalston  ;  district  two, 
of  the  towns  of  Gardner,  Templeton,  and  Winchendon  ;  district 
three,  of  the  city  of  Fitchburg  and  the  towns  of  Ashburnham, 
Leominster,  Lunenburg,  Princeton,  and  Westminster ;  district 
four,  of  the  towns  of  Berlin,  Bolton,  Clinton,  Harvard,  Lan- 
caster, and  Sterling ;  district  five,  of  the  towns  of  Grafton, 
Northborough,  Southborough,  and  Westborough  ;  district  six, 
of  the  towns  of  Mendon,  Milford,  and  Upton  ;  district  seven,  of 
the  towns  of  Blackstone,  Douglas,  Northbridge,  and  Uxbridge  ; 
district  eight,  of  the  towns  of  Charlton,  Dudley,  Oxford,  South- 
bridge,  Sturbridge,  and  Webster  ;  district  nine,  of  the  towns  of 
Brookfield,  North  Brookfield,  Spencer,  Warren,  and  West 
Brookfield  ;  district  ten,  of  the  towns  of  Barre,  Dana,  Hubbard- 
ston,  Hardwick,  New  Braintree,  Oakham,  and  Rutland  ;  and  dis- 
trict eleven,  of  the  city  of  Worcester  and  the  towns  of  Auburn, 
Boylston,  Holden,  Leicester,  Millbury,  Paxton,  Shrewsbury, 
Sutton,  and  West  Boylston. 
Associate  3.    The  governor  may  also  in  like  manner  nominate  and 

examiner  for 

Suffolk.  appoint  an  associate  medical  examiner  for  the  county  of  Suffolk, 

1881, 295.  1  r  J 


Worcester 
Couuty. 


109 


who  shall,  at  the  request  of  either  of  the  medical  examiners  for 
said  count}',  perform  all  the  duties  and  exercise  all  the  powers 
of  a  medical  examiner  in  said  county,  but  he  shall  not  in  any 
year  be  so  required  to  serve  for  more  than  one  month  at  the 
request  of  either  of  said  medical  examiners. 

4.  Said  medical  examiners  and  associate  medical  examiner  Term  of  office 

.  .        and  removal. 

shall  hold  their  offices  lor  a  term  or  seven  years  from  the  time  p.  s.,  e.  26,  §  4. 
of  their  respective  appointments,  but  shall  be  liable  to  removal 
from  office  by  the  governor  and  council  at  any  time  for  cause 
shown. 

5.  Each  medical  examiner  and  the  associate  medical  ex-  official  bonds, 

etc. 

aminer  for  Suffolk  county  shall,  before  entering  upon  the  duties  p.  s.,  c.  26,  §  5. 
of  his  office,  be  sworn,  and  give  bond  to  the  treasurer  of  the 
county,  with  sureties  in  the  sum  of  five  thousand  dollars,  for 
the  faithful  performance  of  such  duties.  If  he  fails  to  give 
such  bond  for  thirty  clays  after  his  appointment,  such  appoint- 
ment shall  be  void. 

G.    The  superior  court  shall  each  year  examine  into  the  Examination  of 

/v>-  /.hit.  Ti  i«  •  -i  bond  by  supe- 

sumciency  of  all  bonds  given  under  the  preceding  section  ;  and  rior  court, 
if  it  appears  that  any  such  bond  is  insufficient,  said  court  shall  i sV 7 , 206 ^ § ' I 4? 5 " 
cause  a  record  of  that  fact  to  be  made  by  its  clerk,  and  shall 
require  the  party  who  gave  such  bond  to  give  a  new  one,  satis- 
factory to  the  court,  within  such  time  as  it  shall  order. 

7.  A  surety  on  any  such  bond,  or  his  heirs,  executors,  or  Discharge  of 

...  ...  .  „        .  .     surety  on  bond. 

administrators,  may  petition  the  superior  court,  for  the  county  g.s.,  c.  17,  §  76. 
for  which  the  officer  who  gave  it  was  appointed,  to  be  dis-  1877» -00> §  24- 
charged  from  such  bond,  and  like  proceedings  shall,  thereupon 
be  had  as  in  case  of  a  similar  petition  by  a  surety  on  a  sheriff's 
official  bond. 

8.  If  the  condition  of  any  such  bond  is  broken  to  the  injury  Breach  of  con- 
of  any  person,  the  officer  who  gave  it  shall  be  liable  to  removal  G!s"c.fi7?§d77. 
from  his  office  and  be  subject  to  like  penalties  as   sheriffs  1877, 200' §  24" 
in  like  cases,  and  actions  may  be  brought  upon  such  bonds  in 

like  manner  as  upon  the  official  bonds  of  sheriffs. 

9.  In  the  county  of  Suffolk  each  medical  examiner  shall  Salaries  and  fees 

^  of  medical 

receive  from  the  treasurer  of  the  county,  in  full  for  all  services  examiners. 

J  '  1885,  379,  §  1. 

performed  by  him,  a  salary  of  three  thousand  dollars  a  year, 
and  the  associate  medical  examiner  a  salary  of  five  hundred 
dollars  ;  but  if  the  said  associate  medical  examiner  serves  in 
any  year  more  than  two  months,  at  the  request  of  either  medical 
examiner,  he  shall,  for  such  service  in  excess  of  two  months, 
be  paid  at  the  same  rate  as  such  medical  examiner,  and  such 


110 


compensation  shall  be  deducted  from  the  salary  of  the  medical 
examiner  in  whose  stead  he  serves.  The  medical  examiners 
in  other  counties  shall  receive  fees  as  follows  :  For  a  view  with- 
out an  autopsy,  five  dollars  ;  for  a  view  and  autopsy,  thirty 
dollars  ;  and  for  travel,  at  the  rate  of  ten  cents  a  mile  to  and 
from  the  place  of  view. 
Duties  of  mecii-      10.    Medical  examiners  shall  make  examination  as  herein- 

cal  examiners. 

p. s.,  c.  26,  §  io.  after  provided,  upon  the  view  of  the  dead  bodies  of  such 
persons  only  as  are  supposed  to  have  come  to  their  death  by 
violence. 

When  ™  11.    When  a  medical  examiner  has  notice  that  there  has  been 

autopsy  shall  be 

made.  ^  found,  of  is  lying  within  his  county,,  the  dead  body  of  a  person 
who  is  supposed  to  have  come  to  his  death  by  violence,  he  shall 
forthwith  repair  to  the  place  where  such  body  lies,  and  take 
charge  of  the  same  ;  and  if,  on  view  thereof  and  personal  in- 
quiry into  the  cause  and  manner  of  the  death,  he  deems  a 
further  examination  necessary,  he  shall,  upon  being  thereto 
authorized  in  writing  by  the  district  attorney,  mayor  or  select- 
men of  the  district,  city,  or  town  where  such  body  lies,  make 
an  autopsy  in  the  presence  of  two  or  more  discreet  persons, 
whose  attendance  he  may  compel  by  subpoena  if  necessary,  and 
shall  then  and  there  carefully  reduce  or  cause  to  be  reduced  to 
writing  every  fact  and  circumstance  tending  to  show  the  con- 
dition of  the  body  and  the  cause  and  manner  of  death,  together 
with  the  names  and  addresses  of  said  witnesses,  which  record 
he  shall  subscribe.  Before  making  such  autopsy  he  shall  call 
the  attention  of  the  witnesses  to  the  position  and  appearance  of 
the  body. 

Districtatiomey     12.    If  upon  such  view,  personal  inquiry  or  autopsy,  he  is 

or  other  magis        „       .    .  .     .  ,  in 

trate  to  be  noti-  of  opinion  that  the  death  was  caused  by  violence,  he  shall  at 
was  caused  by  once  notify  the  district  attorney  and  a  justice  of  the  district, 
pjgfTcfsje,  §  12.  police  or  municipal  court  for  the  district  or  city  in  which  the 
body  lies,  or  a  trial  justice,  and  shall  file  a  duly  attested  copy 
of  the  record  of  his  autopsy  in  such  court  or  with  such  justice, 
and  a  like  copy  with  such  district  attorney  ;  and  shall  in  all 
cases  certify  to  the  clerk  or  registrar  having  the  custody  of  the 
records  of  births,  marriages  and  deaths  in  the  city  or  town  in 
which  the  person  deceased  came  to  his  death,  the  name  and 
residence  of  the  person  deceased,  if  known,  or  when  the  name 
and  residence  cannot  be  ascertained,  a  description  of  the  person 
deceased  as  full  as  may  be,  for  identification,  together  with  the 
cause  and  manner  by  and  in  which  he  came  to  his  death. 


Ill 


13.  The  court  or  trial  justice  shall  thereupon  hold  an  inquest,  When  inquest 

*  A  shall  be  held. 

which  maybe  private,  in  which  case  any  or  all  persons  other  P.  s.,  c.  26,  §  13. 
than  those  required  to  be  present  by  the  provisions  of  this 
chapter,  may  be  excluded  from  the  place  where  such  inquest  is 
held  ;  and  said  court  or  trial  justice  may  also  direct  the  wit- 
nesses to  be  kept  separate,  so  that  they  cannot  converse  with 
each  other  until  they  have  been  examined.  The  district 
attorney  or  some  person  designated  by  him,  may  attend  the 
inquest  and  examine  all  witnesses.  An  inquest  shall  be  held 
in  all  cases  of  death  by  accident  upon  a  railroad  ;  and  the  district 
attorney  or  the  attorney-general  may,  if  he  deems  it  necessary 
or  expedient,  direct  an  inquest  to  be  held  in  the  case  of  any 
other  casualty  from  which  the  death  of  a  person  results. 

14.  The  justice  or  district  attorney  may  issue  subpoenas  for  witnesses  may 
witnesses,  returnable  before  such  court  or  trial  justice.    The  p. s.,  c. 26,  §  14. 
persons  served  with  such  process  shall  be  allowed  the  same 

fees,  their  attendance  may  be  enforced  in  the  same  manner, 
and  they  shall  be  subject  to  the  same  penalties,  as  if  served 
with  a  subpoma  in  behalf  of  the  Commonwealth  in  a  criminal 
prosecution  pending  before  such  court,  or  trial  justice. 

15.  The  presiding  justice  or  trial  justice  shall,  after  hearing  Justices  to  re- 
the  testimony,  draw  up  and  sign  a  report  in  which  he  shall  find  where  and  how 
and  certify  when,  where  and  by  what  means  the  person  deceased  to  ws8deathme 
came  to  his  death,  his  name  if  known,  and  all  material  circum-  1  '8'' c' 26,  §  15' 
stances  attending  his  death ;  and  if  it  appears  that  his  death 

resulted  wholly  or  in  part  from  the  unlawful  act  of  any  other 
person  or  persons,  he  shall  further  state  the  name  of  such  per- 
son or  persons,  if  known  to  him,  and  he  shall  file  such  report 
with  the  records  of  the  superior  court  in  the  county  wherein  the 
inquest  is  held. 

1G.    If  the  justice  finds  that  murder,  manslaughter,  01*  an  Witnesses  may 

,         ,  .j..  j    ,  i  •     i  •  i  he  bound  over 

assault  has  been  committed,  he  may  bind  over,  as  in  criminal  in  certain  cases, 
prosecutions,  such  witnesses  as  he  deems  necessary,  or  as  the  P'S'' c' 26' §  lfl" 
district  attorney  may  designate,  to  appear  and  testify  at  the 
court  in  which  an  indictment  for  such  offence  may  be  found  or 
presented. 

17.    If  a  person  charged  by  the  report  with  the  commission  Justice  to  issue 
of  an  offence  is  not  in  custody,  the  justice  shall  forthwith  issue  arrest  of  person 
process  for  his  apprehension,  and  such  process  shall  be  made  re-  commlssioif  of 
turn  able  before  any  court  or  magistrate  having  jurisdiction  in  the  S^;  26,  §  u. 
premises,  who  shall  proceed  therein  in  the  manner  required  by 


112 


examination. 
P.S.,  c.  20,  §  19 


law  ;  but  nothing  herein  shall  prevent  any  justice  from  issuing 
such  process  before  the  finding  of  such  report  if  it  be  otherwise 
lawful  to  issue  the  same, 
inquest  may  be      18.    If  a  medical  examiner  reports  that  a  death  was  not 

ordered  by  dis- 
trict attorney  or  caused  by  violence,  and  the  district  attorney  or  the  attorney- 

by  attorney-  / 

general.  general  is  of  a  contrary  opinion,  either  the  district  attorney  or 

,,c.  6, §i  .  ^e  attorney-general  may,  notwithstanding  such  report,  direct 
an  inquest  to  be  held  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  this 
chapter,  at  which  inquest  he,  or  some  person  designated  by 
him,  shall  be  present  and  examine  all  the  witnesses. 

Chemist  may  be     19.    The  medical  examiner  may,  if  he  deems  it  necessary, 

called  to  aid  the  m  . 

call  a  chemist  to  aid  in  the  examination  of  the  body  or  of  sub- 
stances supposed  to  have  caused  or  contributed  to  the  death, 
and  such  chemist  shall  be  entitled  to  such  compensation  for  his 
services  as  the  medical  examiner  certifies  to  be  just  and  reason- 
able, the  same  being  audited  and  allowed  in  the  manner  herein 
provided.  A  clerk  who  may  be  employed  to  reduce  to  writing 
the  results  of  a  medical  examination  or  autopsy,  shall  be 
allowed  for  his  services  two  dollars  per  day. 
Disposal  of  20.    The  medical  examiner  upon  the  completion   of  his 

i887"*3i"o2§*i  2°"  au^°Psy  *n  any  case  rising  under  the  provisions  of  this  chapter, 
or  upon  the  conclusion  of  his  view  or  medical  examination  when 
an  autopsy  is  deemed  unnecessary,  shall  deliver  the  dead  body, 
upon  their  claim  therefor,  to  one  or  more  of  the  persons  herein- 
after named ;  and  they  shall  be  entitled  thereto  as  fol- 
lows :  —  First,  the  husband  or  wife,  as  the  case  may  be. 
Second,  the  next  of  kin.  Third,  any  friend  of  the  deceased. 
But  if  the  dead  body  is  unidentified  or  unclaimed  for  a  period 
of  not  less  than  forty-eight  hours  following  the  view  thereof, 
the  medical  examiner  shall  deliver  the  body  to  the  overseers 
of  the  poor  of  the  city  or  town  wherein  it  is  found  lying,  and 
said  overseers  shall  decently  bury  the  same  in  accordance  with 
the  provisions  of  section  seventeen  of  chapter  eighty-four  of 
the  Public  Statutes. 
Services  for         21.    When  services  are  rendered  in  bringing  to  land  the 

brinGjinj?  dcud 

body  to  land      dead  body  of  a  person  found  in  any  of  the  harbors,  rivers  or 
pensated. m      waters  of  the  Commonwealth,  the  medical  examiner  may  allow 
p. s.,  c.  26,  §  21.         compensation  for  said  services  as  he  deems  reasonable, 
but  this  provision  shall  not  entitle  any  person  to  compensation 
for  services  rendered  in  searching  for  a  dead  body. 


113 


22.  In  all  cases  arising  under  the  provisions  of  this  chapter  Medical  exam- 

0  iner  to  take 

the  medical  examiner  shall  take  charge  of  auy  money  or  other  charge  of  money 

or  other  prop- 

personal  property  of  the  deceased,  found  upon  or  near  the  erty  found  on 
body,  and  deliver  the  same  to  the  person  or  persons  entitled  to  body! 
its  custody  or  possession  ;  or,  if  not  claimed  by  such  person  1  * S'' c* 26' §  2-' 
within  sixty  days,  then  to  a  public  administrator,  to  be  adminis- 
tered upon  according  to  law. 

23.  A  medical  examiner  who  fraudulently  neglects  or  re-  Penalty  for 
fuses  to  deliver  any  such  property  to  such  person  within  three  gfveCup  prop- 
days  after  due  demand  upon  him  therefor  shall  be  punished  by  p.    c.  26,  §  23. 
imprisonment  in  the  jail  or  house  of  correction  not  exceeding  two 

years,  or  by  fine  not  exceeding  five  hundred  dollars. 

24.  Every  medical  examiner  shall  return  an  account  of  the  Account  of 

.  .  .  expenses  and 

expenses  of  each  view  or  autopsy,  including  his  fees,  to  the  feestoberen- 
county  commissioners  having  jurisdiction  over  the  place  where  audited, 
the  examination  or  view  is  held,  or  in  the  county  of  Suffolk  to  the  mw.'sim  I.2*" 
auditor  of  the  city  of  Boston,  and  shall  annex  to  his  return 
the  written  authority  under  which  the  autopsy  was  made.  Such 
commissioners  or  auditor  shall  audit  such  accounts  and  certify 
to  the  treasurer  of  the  county  what  items  in  such  account  are 
deemed  just  and  reasonable  and  such  items  shall  be  paid  by  said 
treasurer  to  the  person  entitled  to  receive  the  same. 

25.  The  fees  of  trial  justices  for  the  services  specified  in  Fees  of  trial 
this  chapter  shall  be  as  follows  :  namely,  for  receiving  and  filing  services  at 

a  duly  attested  copy  of  the  record  of  an  autopsy,  fifty  cents  ;  for  i878,e23o'. 
each  subpoena  issued,  ten  cents  ;  for  each  day's  attendance  in 
holding  the  inquest,  five  dollars  ;  for  the  recognizance  of  wit- 
nesses, twenty  cents  ;  and  for  drawing  up  and  filing  a  report  in 
superior  court,  five  dollars.  The  said  fees,  having  been  audited 
by  the  district-attorney,  shall  be  paid  from  the  treasury  of  the 
county. 

26.  Section  seventeen  of  chapter  eighty-four  of  the  Public  Medical  exam- 
Statutes  is  hereby  amended  by  striking  out  the  words  "  except  charged  with 
such  strangers  as  are  buried  by  medical  examiners  under  the  strangers.0 
provisions  of  section  twenty  of  chapter  twenty-six." 

27.  When  a  medical  examiner  deems  it  necessary  to  have  a  Fee  of  medical 
physician  present  at  an  autopsy  as  one  of  the  witnesses,  as  ^ineB8, 
provided  in  section  eleven  of  chapter  twenty-six  of  the  Public 
Statutes,  such  physician  shall  be  allowed  five  dollars  for  his 

services.  Other  witnesses  required  by  law  to  be  present  at  an  Fees  of  other 
autopsy  shall  be  allowed  two  dollars  each.  im?!ii9*\  2. 


114 


Medical  ex- 
aminers to  make 
returns  to  secre- 
tary of  state. 
1885,  379,  §  3. 


Fees  for  record- 
ing and  making 
returns. 


Penalty. 
1885,  379,  §  4. 


Secretary  of 
state  to  furnish 
blank  books  and 
forms  for 
returns. 
1885,  379,  §  5. 


to  cause 
returns  to  be 
bound,  and  to 
publish  results 
in  registration 
report. 
1885,379,  §  6. 


Medical  ex- 
aminer to  file 
a  report  of 


28.  Every  medical  examiner  shall,  annually,  on  or  before 
the  first  day  of  March,  transmit  to  the  secretary  of  the  common- 
wealth certified  copies  of  the  records  of  all  deaths  which  have 
occurred  during  the  year  ending  on  the  last  day  of  the  preceding 
December,  the  cause  and  manner  of  which  he  has  investi- 
gated, in  accordance  with  the  requirements  of  chapter  twenty- 
six  of  the  Public  Statutes  :  provided,  however,  if  the  term  of 
office  of  any  medical  examiner  shall  end  before  the  last  day  of 
December,  he  shall  send  to  the  secretary  of  the  commonwealth, 
within  the  sixty  days  next  ensuing  upon  the  expiration  of  his 
commission  as  a  medical  examiner,  certified  copies  of  the 
records  of  all  deaths  officially  investigated  by  him  during  that  part 
of  the  then  current  calendar  year  in  which  he  continued  in  office. 

29.  Each  medical  examiner  shall  be  entitled  to  receive  from 
the  treasury  of  the  commonwealth,  for  recording  and  returning 
the  facts  relating  to  deaths  as  herein  provided,  twenty  cents  for 
each  of  the  first  twenty  entries,  and  ten  cents  for  each  subse- 
quent entry  in  any  year,  as  certified  by  the  secretary  of  the 
commonwealth,  and  such  allowance  and  payment  shall  be  made 
to  the  medical  examiners  in  Suffolk  County  for  record  and 
returns  pursuant  to  this  section,  notwithstanding  the  limitation 
to  the  salary  fixed  by  section  nine  of  chapter  twenty-six  of  the 
Public  Statutes  as  amended  by  this  act.  Any  medical  examiner 
shall  forfeit  not  less  than  ten  nor  more  than  fifty  dollars 
for  each  refusal  or  neglect  to  fulfil  the  requirements  of  section 
three  of  this  act. 

30.  The  secretary  shall,  at  the  expense  of  the  common- 
wealth, prepare  and  furnish  to  the  several  medical  examiners, 
blank  books  of  suitable  quality  and  size,*to  be  used  as  books 
of  record  under  this  act,  and  blank  forms  for  returns,  on  paper 
of  uniform  size. 

31.  The  secretary  shall  cause  the  returns  received  by  him 
for  each  year,  in  accordance  with  this  act,  to  be  bound  together 
in  one  volume,  with  indexes  thereto  ;  he  shall  prepare  or  cause 
to  be  prepared  from  the  said  returns  such  tabular  results  as  will 
render  them  of  practical  utility,  and  shall  make  report  thereof 
annually  to  the  general  court  in  connection  with  the  report  of  the 
registry  and  return  of  births,  marriages  and  deaths  required  by 
section  fifteen  of  chapter  thirty- two  of  the  Public  Statutes. 

32.  Every  medical  examiner  shall  forthwith  file  with  the 
district  attorney  of  his  district,  a  report  of  each  autopsy  made 


115 


by  him  and  of  his  view  and  personal  inquiry  in  such  case  under  *ut°i?83T  ?'ith 

J  i  i      j  district  attorney 

the  provisions  of  chapter  twenty-six  of  the  Public  Statutes;  and  certify  as  to 

1  "  its  necessity. 

and  shall  certify  in  such  report  that,  in  his  judgment,  the  cause 
and  manner  of  death  could  not  be  ascertained  by  view  and 
inquiry,  and  that  an  autopsy  was  necessary  for  that  purpose. 
The  district  attorney  shall  examine  such  report,  and  if  of  the  District  at- 

•   •  i  i  in  ,  •      ii      torney  shall  ex- 

opinion  that  such  autopsy  was  necessary  shall,  except  in  the  amine  reports 
county  of  Suffolk,  so  certify  to  the  county  commissioners,  hav-  opinion  as  to 
ing  jurisdiction  over  the  place  where  the  autopsy  is  held,  and  no  iSsm^'s  T- 
fee  for  any  autopsy  shall  be  certified  by  the  commissioners  for 
payment  until  such  certificate  by  the  district  attorney  shall  have 
been  filed  with  said  commissioners. 


110 


ADDITIONAL  STATUTES  RELATING  TO 
PUBLIC  HEALTH. 


Privy  vault  not 
to  be  established 
in  sewered 
street  without 
permission  of 
board  of  health. 


Board  may 
declare  vault  a 
nuisance  and 
forbid  its  con- 
tinuance. 
1890,  74,  §  1. 


Act  to  take 
effect  when 
accepted  by 
city  council. 
1890,  74,  §'2. 


The  following  statutes  relating  to  public  health  matters  were 
enacted  by  the  Legislature  of  1890. 

[Chap.  74.] 

An  Act  in  relation  to  the  preservation  of  public  health 

in  cities. 

Be  it  enacted,  etc.,  as  follows : 

Section  1.  No  privy  vault  shall  be  established  in  a  city 
which  accepts  this  act  either  upon  premises  situated  on  a  public 
or  private  street,  court  or  passage  way  where  there  is  a  public 
sewer  opposite  thereto,  or  upon  premises  connected  with  a 
public  or  private  sewer,  without  permission  in  writing  first 
obtained  from  the  board  of  health  of  such  city.  And  whenever 
there  is  in  such  city  a  privy  vault  so  situated  which,  in  the 
opinion  of  the  board  of  health  of  such  city,  is  injurious  to  the 
public  health,  said  board  shall  declare  the  same  to  be  a 
nuisance,  and  forbid  its  continuance,  and  sections  twenty-one 
to  twenty-three  inclusive  of  chapter  eighty  of  the  Public 
Statutes  shall  apply  to  such  nuisances  so  declared. 

Section  2.  This  act  shall  take  effect  in  any  city  of  the 
Commonwealth  when  accepted  by  the  city  council  thereof. 
[Approved  March  6,  1890. 

[Chap.  102.] 

An  Act  concerning  notice  in  case  of  infectious  or  con- 
tagious DISEASES. 
Be  it  enacted,  etc.,  as  follows: 

Section  one  of  chapter  ninety-eight  of  the  acts  of  the  year 
eighteen  hundred  and  eighty-four  is  hereby  amended  by  strik- 
ing out  all  of  said  section  and  inserting  in  place  thereof  the  fol- 
lowing new  section  :  —  Section  1.    When  a  householder  knows 


117 


that  a  person  within  his  family  or  house  is  sick  of  small-pox,  Householder  to 

diphtheria,  scarlet  fever,  or  any  other  infectious  or  contagious  health  of  case  of 

disease  dangerous  to  the  public  health,  he  shall  immediately  ease?10"8  dl8' 

give  notice  thereof  to  the  board  of  health  of  the  city  or  town 

in  which  he  dwells,  and  upon  the  death,  recovery  or  removal 

of  such  person,  such  of  the  rooms  of  said  house  and  such  of  Certain  rooms 

1  and  articles  to 

the  articles  therein  as,  in  the  opinion  of  the  board  of  health,  be  disinfected, 
have  been  subjected  to  infection  or  contagion  shall  be  disin- 
fected by  such  householder  to  the  satisfaction  of  said  board  of 
health.    Any  person  neglecting  or  refusing  to  comply  with  Penalty  for 
either  of  the  above  provisions  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  not  refusal. °r 
exceeding  one  hundred  dollars.    [Approved  March  19,  1890.    1?J0' 10*" 


[Chap.  124.] 

Ax  Act  providing  for  the  purchase  or  taking  of  land  by 

CITIES  AND  TOWNS  FOR    THE    PURIFICATION    AND  DISPOSAL  OF 
SEWAGE. 

Be  it  enacted,  etc.,  as  follows: 

Section  one  of  chapter  fifty  of  the  Public  Statutes  is  hereby 
amended  by  adding  at  the  end  thereof  the  words  :  —  Cities  and  Cities  and  towns 

J  °  may  take  land 

towns  may  with  the  approval  of  the  state  board  of  health,  for  sewage  dis- 
obtained  after  a  public  hearing  by  said  board  of  all  parties 
interested,  purchase  or  take  land  within  their  respective  limits 
for  the  purification  and  disposal  of  sewage.    Said  board  shall  state  board  to 

A  give  notice  of 

give  notice  of  such  hearings  by  publication  in  such  newspapers  hearings. 

and  at  such  times  as  it  may  deem  proper,  —  so  that  said  section 

as  amended  shall  read  as  follows  :  —  Section  1 .    The  mayor  Authorities  of 

i      ii  j.  iii  ii  i  •      cities  and  towns 

and  aldermen  of  a  city,  and  the  selectmen  or  road  commis-  may  make 
sioners  of  a  town,  may  lay,  make,  and  maintain  all  such  main  tems,iag 


drains  or  common  sewers,  as  they  adjudge  to  be  necessary  for 
the  public  convenience  or  the  public  health,  through  the  lands 
of  any  persons  or  corporations,  and  may  repair  the  same  when- 
ever it  is  necessary  ;  main  drains  and  common  sewers  so  laid 
shall  be  the  property  of  the  city  or  town.  Cities  and  towns 
may  with  the  approval  of  the  state  board  of  health,  obtained 
after  a  public  hearing  by  said  board  of  all  parties  interested, 
purchase  or  take  land  within  their  respective  limits  for  the  puri- 
fication and  disposal  of  sewage.  Said  board  shall  give  notice 
of  such  hearings  by  publication^  such  newspapers  and  at  such 
times  as  it  may  deem  proper.    [Approved  March  27,  1890. 


)0,  124°.' 


118 


[Chap.  132.] 


Buildings  to 
connected  wi 
sewer,  when 
1890,  V32,  §  1. 


Penalty. 
1890,  132,  §  1. 


An  Act  to  provide  for  connecting  buildings  with  public 

SEWERS. 

Be  it  enacted,  etc.,  as  follows  : 

Section  1.  Every  building  situated  on  a  public  or  private 
street,  court  or  passageway,  in  which  there  is  a  public  sewer, 
shall,  when  required  by  the  board  of  health  of  the  city  or  town 
in  which  it  stands,  be  connected  by  a  good  and  sufficient  partic- 
ular drain  with  such  public  sewer. 

Section  2.  Any  person  owning,  leasing  or  maintaining  any 
building  not  connected  with  a  public  sewer  as  provided  in  the 
preceding  section  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  not  exceeding  two 
hundred  dollars. 

Section  3.  This  act  shall  take  effect  upon  its  passage. 
[Approved  March  28,  1890. 


State  board  of 
health  to  have 
supervision  of 
streams  and 
ponds  used  as 
sources  of 
water  supply. 
1890,  441,  §  1. 


Complaints  as 
to  pollution. 


Hearing  to  be 
held. 


Board  may  pro 
hibit  pollution. 


[Chap.  441..] 

An  Act  in  addition  to  the  acts  to  prevent  the  pollution 
of  sources  of  water  supply. 

Be  it  enacted,  etc.,  as  follows  : 

Section  1.  The  state  board  of  health  shall  have  the  general 
supervision  of  all  streams  and  ponds  used  by  a  city  or  town  as 
sources  of  water  supply,  with  reference  to  their  purity,  together 
with  all  springs,  streams  and  water-courses  tributary  thereto ; 
and  shall  have  authority  to  examine  the  same  from  time  to  time 
and  inquire  what  pollutions  exist  and  what  are  their  causes. 

Section  2.  Whenever  the  mayor  of  a  city  or  the  selectmen 
of  a  town,  using  a  stream  or  pond  as  a  source  of  water  supply, 
complains  to  said  state  board  of  health  that  manure,  excrement, 
garbage,  sewage  or  any  other  matter  is  so  deposited,  kept  or 
discharged  within  one  hundred  feet  of  the  high  water  mark  of 
any  such  stream  or  pond,  or  any  stream,  pond,  spring  or  water- 
course tributary  thereto,  as  to  pollute  or  tend  to  pollute  the 
waters  of  such  stream,  pond,  spring  or  water-course,  the  said 
board  of  health  shall  appoint  a  time  and  place  for  hearing  par- 
ties to  be  affected,  and  give  due  notice  thereof  to  such  parties  ; 
and  after  such  hearing,  if  in  its  judgment  the  public  health 
-  requires  it,  may  prohibit  the  deposit,  keeping  or  discharge  of 
any  such  material  as  aforesaid,  and  may  order  any  person  to 
desist  therefrom  and  to  remove  any  such  material  theretofore 


119 


deposited ;  but  shall  not  prohibit  the  use  of  any  structure  as  Prohibition 
was  customary  at  the  time  of  the  passage  of  this  act,  unless  the 
mayor  of  the  city  or  the  selectmen  of  the  town  making  the 
complaint  shall  file  with  said  state  board  of  health  an  agree- 
ment in  writing  that  such  city  or  town  shall  at  its  own  expense 
make  such  changes  in  said  structure  or  its  location  as  said 
board  shall  deem  expedient,  and  such  agreement  shall  be  bind- 
ing on  such  city  or  town  ;  and  when  such  changes  have  been  Damages  to  be 
made  all  damages  occasioned  thereby  shall  be  paid  by  such 'city  town?3'  uty  °r 
or  town;  and  if  the  parties  cannot  agree  thereon,  such  dam-  maybedcter- 
ages  shall  be  determined  by  a  jury  on  petition  of  either  party  mme  yjuiy' 
filed  in  the  clerk's  office  of  the  superior  court,  in  the  manner 
provided  by  law  in  relation  to  determining  the  damages  occa- 
sioned by  taking  land  for  highways  in  such  city  or  town  ;  said  ^qJ^J11  aud 
board  shall  not  prohibit  the  cultivation  and  use  of  the  soil  in  allowed. 

1  1890,  440,  §  2. 

the  ordinary  methods  of  husbandry,  provided  no  human  excre- 
ment be  used  thereon. 

Section  3.    Any  person  aggrieved  by  an  order  passed  under  Appeals,  how 
this  act  may  appeal  therefrom  ;  and  if  he  shall,  within  ten  days 
from  the  service  of  such  order  upon  him,  file  a  petition  in  the 
clerk's  office  of  the  superior  court  in  the  county  where  the  prem- 
ises are  located,  with  reference  to  which  such  order  is  made,  for 
a  jury,  a  trial  may,  after  such  notice  as  the  court  shall  order  to 
the  said  board  of  health  and  the  mayor  of  the  city  or  the  chair- 
man of  the  selectmen  of  a  town  interested  in  such  order,  be  had 
at  the  bar  of  the  court  in  the  same  manner  as  other  civil 
cases  are  tried  by  jury.    If  a  person  by  mistake  of  law  or  fact  Failure  to 
or  by  accident  fails  to  appeal  from  any  such  order  and  to  file  appeal* 
his  petition  for  a  jury  within  ten  days,  and  if  he  makes  it 
appear  to  the  court  or  justice  that  such  failure  was  caused  by 
mistake  or  accident  and  that  he  has  not  since  the  service  of 
such  order  upon  him  violated  such  order,  he  may  at  any  time 
within  thirty  days  from  the  service  of  the  order  upon  him 
appeal  therefrom  and  file  his  petition  for  a  jury  with  the  same 
effect  as  if  done  within  the  said  ten  days.    During  the  pen-  orders  to  be 
dency  of  the  appeal  the  order  of  the  said  board  of  health  shall  during epeuV-lth 
be  complied  with  unless  otherwise  authorized  by  said  board  dency  of  a^eaL 
after  the  appeal.    The  verdict  of  the  jury,  which  may  either  Authority  of 
alter  the  order  or  affirm  or  annul  it  in  full,  when  accepted  by  ISo/Si,  §  3. 
the  court  shall  have  the  authority  and  effect  of  and  may  be 
enforced  in  the  same  way  as  an  original  order  from  which  no 
appeal  had  been  taken. 


120 


Court  may 
enforce  orders 
of  board. 


may  restrain 
by  injunction. 
1890,  441,  §  4. 


Penalty  for  vio- 
lation. 

1890,  441,  §  5. 


Act  not  to 
impair  or  repeal 
existing  provi- 
sions. 


Certain  rivers 
excepted. 
1890,  441,  §  6. 


Heal  ings  to  be 
held  in  city  or 
town  where  pol- 
lution is  alleged 
to  exist. 
1890,  441,  §  7. 


Section  4.  Any  court  having  equity  jurisdiction  may,  in 
term  time  or  vacation,  on  the  application  of  said  state  board  of 
health  or  of  any  party  interested,  by  any  suitable  process 
or  decree  in  equity,  enforce  by  injunction  or  otherwise  such 
orders  of  said  board  of  health  or  of  said  court ;  and  may  at  the 
same  time  issue  an  injunction  to  restrain,  until  the  orders  of 
said  board  have  been  complied  with,  the  use  or  occupation  of 
the  premises  within  said  distance  of  one  hundred  feet  on  which 
the  said  material  is  deposited  or  kept. 

Section  5.  Whoever  deposits,  keeps  or  discharges  on  his 
premises  any  material  in  violation  of  such  order  of  prohibition, 
after  the  same  has  been  served  upon  him  as  aforesaid,  shall 
forfeit  a  sum  not  exceeding  ten  dollars  for  each  and  every  day 
until  such  order  is  complied  with. 

Section  6.  This  act  shall  not  be  construed  to  impair  or 
repeal  any  existing  provision  of  law  in  regard  to  the  pollution 
of  springs,  streams,  ponds  or  water-courses,  or  the  prevention 
of  such  pollution,  or  the  powers  and  jurisdiction  of  any  court 
relating  to  the  prevention  of  such  pollution  ;  nor  shall  it  be 
applicable  to  the  Merrimac  or  Connecticut  rivers,  nor  to  so 
much  of  the  Concord  river  as  lies  within  the  limits  of  the  city  of 
Lowell. 

Section  7.  All  hearings  granted  in  accordance  with  the 
provisions  of  this  act  shall  be  held  in  the  city  or  town  in  which 
the  nuisance  or  pollution  is  alleged  to  exist.  [Approved  June 
23,  1890. 


121 


POWEKS  AND  DUTIES  OF  THE  STATE  BOARD 
OF  HEALTH. 


The  manual  herewith  published  contains  the  laws  now  in  force  which 
pertain  to  public  health  in  the  State  of  Massachusetts,  together  with 
the  laws  relating  to  inquests  and  to  the  registration  of  births,  mar- 
riages and  deaths.  These  laws  have  been  enacted  at  different  periods. 
Some  of  them  have  reference  to  the  powers  and  duties  of  the  State 
Board  of  Health,  some  to  those  of  local  boards  having  jurisdiction 
in  cities  and  towns,  and  some  have  reference  to  neither  of  these  bodies. 

As  a  matter  of  convenience,  the  following  summary  of  the  powers 
and  duties  of  the  State  Board  is  herewith  published  in  separate  form. 

ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  BOARD.     TERMS  OF  OFFICE.  VACANCIES. 
ROOMS.     MEETINGS.  BY-LAWS. 

1.  The  state  board  of  health  shall  consist  of  seven  persons,  appointed 
by  the  governor,  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  council.  (1886, 
c.  101,  §  1.) 

2.  The  members  of  the  board  shall  hold  office  for  seven  years,  so 
arranged  that  the  term  of  one  member  shall  expire  eacli  year.  (1886, 
c.  101,  §  1.) 

3.  All  vacancies  in  the  board  shall  be  filled  by  the  governor  and 
council.    (1886,  c.  101,  §  1.) 

4.  The  board  shall  be  provided  with  rooms  at  the  expense  of  the 
state.    (1886,  c.  101,  §  2.) 

5.  It  shall  hold  meetings  each  month,  on  a  day  fixed  by  itself,  and 
at  such  other  times  as  may  be  needful.    (1886,  c.  101,  §  2.) 

6.  It  shall  make  its  own  by-laws.    (1886,  c.  101,  §  2.) 

REPORT. 

7.  It  shall  make  a  report  of  its  doings  to  the  governor  and  council 
on  or  before  the  thirty-first  day  of  December  in  each  year,  such  report 
to  be  made  up  to  the  thirtieth  of  September  inclusive.  (1886,  c-  101, 
§2.) 

DUTIES  OF  SECRETARY. 

8.  The  board  shall  elect  its  secretary,  who  shall  be  its  executive 
officer,  and  shall  hold  office  during  the  pleasure  of  the  board.  He  shall 
perform  or  superintend  the  work  prescribed  by  law  for  the  state  board 
of  health,  and  as  directed  by  the  board,  and  such  other  duties  as  the 
board  may  require.    He  shall  not  be  ex  officio  a  member  of  the  board, 


122 


but  the  board  may,  whenever  it  shall  be  deemed  necessary,  elect  one 
of  its  members  secretary  pro  tempore,  who  may  in  the  absence  or 
disability  of  the  secretary  perform  the  duties  of  that  office.  The 
secretary  shall  receive  from  the  treasury  an  annual  salary  of  three 
thousand  dollars,  and  his  necessary  travelling  expenses  incurred  in 
the  performance  of  official  duties.    (1886,  c.  101,  §  3.) 

EXPENSES  OE  BOARD. 

9.  No  member  of  the  board  shall  receive  any  compensation.  The 
actual  personal  expenses  of  any  member  while  engaged  in  the  duties  of 
the  board  shall  be  paid  from  the  treasury,  after  they  have  been  audited 
by  the  board.    (1886,  c.  101,  §  3.) 

10.  All  other  necessary  expenses  arising  in  the  secretary's  office  or 
from  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of  .the  board  shall  be  paid  out  of  the 
treasury  in  the  same  manner  as  those  of  the  different  departments  of 
the  government.    (1886,  c.  101,  §  3.) 

GENERAL  DUTIES  OE  BOARD. 

11.  It  shall  take  cognizance  of  the  interests  of  health  and  life 
among  the  citizens  of  the  Commonwealth.    (1886,  c.  101,  §  4.) 

12.  It  shall  make  sanitary  investigations  and  inquiries  in  respect  to 
the  causes  of  disease,  and  especially  of  epidemics  and  the  sources  of 
mortality.    (1886,  c.  101,  §  4.) 

13.  It  shall  also  make  investigations  in  respect  to  the  effects  of 
localities,  employments,  conditions,  and  circumstances,  on  the  public 
health.    (1886,  c.  101,  §  4.) 

14.  It  shall  gather  such  information  in  respect  to  the  foregoing 
subjects  as  it  may  deem  proper  for  diffusion  among  the  people.  (1886, 
c.  101,  §  4.) 

15.  It  shall  advise  the  government  in  regard  to  the  location  and 
other  sanitary  conditions  of  any  public  institutions.    (1886,  c.  101,  §  4.) 

SMALL-POX  AND  OTHER  CONTAGIOUS  DISEASES. 

16.  If  sm all-pox  or  any  other  contagious  or  infectious  disease  dan- 
gerous to  the  public  health  exists,  or  is  likely  to  exist,  in  any  place 
within  the  state,  the  state  board  shall  investigate  the  same,  and  the 
means  of  preventing  the  spread  thereof,  and  shall  consult  thereon  with 
the  local  authorities,  and  shall  have  co-ordinate  powers  as  a  board  of 
health,  in  every  place,  with  the  board  of  health  or  health  officer  there- 
of, or  with  the  mayor  and  aldermen  or  the  selectmen,  if  no  such  board 
or  officer  exists  in  such  place.    (Pub.  Stats.,  c.  80,  §  2.) 

17.  It  shall  be  notified  by  local  boards  of  the  occurrence  of  small- 
pox in  cities  and  towns,  within  twenty-four  hours  after  they  have 
received  notice  of  such  occurrence.    (1883,  c.  138,  §  1.)  ■ 

18.  The  secretary  of  the  state  board  shall  forthwith  transmit  a  copy 
of  the  notice  so  received  to  the  state  board  of  lunacy  and  charity. 
(1886,  c.  101,  §  4.) 


123 


INSPECTION  OF  LYING-IN  HOSPITALS. 

19.  Every  lying-in  hospital,  hospitah»warcl,  or  other  place  for  the 
reception,  care  and  treatment  of  women  in  labor,  shall  be  subject  to 
visitation  and  inspection  by  the  state  board  of  health,  if  it  receives 
more  than  six  women  as  patients  in  labor  in  a  year.  (Pub.  Stats. » 
c.  80,  §  58.) 

HYDROPHOBIA. 

20.  The  secretary  of  the  board  shall  supply  a  description  of  the 
disease  known  as  hydrophobia  to  the  clerks  of  cities  and  towns  upon 
application  from  them.    (Pub.  Stats.,  c.  102,  §  83.) 

OFFENSIVE  TRADES,  ETC 

21.  When  any  building  is  occupied  or  used  for  carrying  on  there- 
in the  business  of  slaughtering  cattle,  sheep  or  other  animals,  or 
for  a  melting  or  rendering  establishment,  or  for  other  noxious  or 
offensive  trades  and  occupations,  the  state  board  of  health  shall,  upon 
application  made  to  it  for  that  purpose,  appoint  a  time  and  place  for 
hearing  the  parties,  and  give  clue  notice  thereof  to  the  party  against 
whom  the  application  is  made,  and  after  such  notice  and  hearing  may, 
if  in  its  judgment  the  public  health  or  the  public  comfort  and  conven- 
ience so  require,  order  any  person  to  desist  and  cease  from  further 
carrying  on  said  trades  or  occupations  in  such  building  or  premises; 
and  any  person  thereafter  continuing  so  to  occupy  or  use  such  building 
or  premises  shall  forfeit  a  sum  not  exceeding  two  hundred  dollars  for 
every  month  of  such  occupancy  and  use,  and  in  like  proportion  for  a 
longer  or  shorter  time.    (Pub.  Stats.,  c.  80,  §  93.) 

22.  The  supreme  judicial  court  in  term  time  or  vacation  may  issue 
an  injunction  to  prevent  the  occupancy,  use,  enlargement,  or  extension 
of  any  building  or  premises  occupied  or  used  for  the  trades  or  occupa- 
tions aforesaid,  without  the  written  consent  and  permission  of  the 
mayor  and  aldermen  of  the  city  or  selectmen  of  the  town  in  which  the 
building  or  premises  are  situated  being  first  obtained;  and  also  in  like 
manner  to  enforce  the  orders  of  the  state  board  issued  under  the  pre- 
ceding section.    (Pub.  Stats.,  c.  80,  §  94.) 

23.  Corporations  formed  for  the  purpose  of  buying  and  slaughter- 
ing swine  and  of  melting  and  rendering  and  pork-packing,  may  take 
and  hold  by  purchase  or  otherwise  such  parcel  of  land,  not  exceeding- 
one  hundred  acres  in  extent,  and  situated  in  such  place,  as  the  state 
board  of  health  may  determine  to  be  suitable  for  said  business.  (Pub. 
Stats.,  c.  107,  §  2.) 

24.  Buildings  constructed  under  tfce  provisions  of  chapter  107,  Pub. 
Stats.,  and  intended  for  the  slaughtering  of  swine,  and  for  melting 
and  rendering,  and  the  necessary  stables  and  outbuildings,  shall  not 
be  erected  until  the  plans  thereof,  with  all  details  of  construction, 
have  been  submitted  to  and  approved  by  said  state  board,  or  some 
person  designated  by  it  to  examine  them.  The  corporation  shall  carry 
on  all  its  business  in  accordance  with  such  regulations  as  said  state 
board  shall,  from  time  to  time,  establish  and  furnish  in  writing  to  the 


124 


clerk  of  the  corporation ;  and  for  each  violation  of  said  regulations  it 
shall  forfeit  not  less  than  twenty  nor  more  than  five  hundred  dollars. 
(Pub.  Stats.,  c.  107,  §  4.)  ♦ 

25.  Subject  to  the  foregoing  provisions,  such  corporation  may 
manufacture  and  sell  any  of  the  usual  products  of  said  slaughtering 

.  and  melting  and  rendering  business,  or  may  lease  or  permit  other  per- 
sons to  use  their  buildings  or  parts  thereof,  on  such  terms  as  may  be 
agreed  upon.  Each  member  of  the  corporation  may  slaughter  swine 
on  said  premises,  subject  to  such  regulations  and  tariff  of  prices  as  the 
corporation  may  by  vote  at  any  regular  meeting  establish,  and  to  the 
regulations  of  the  said  state  board.  A  person  engaged  in  business  in 
the  premises  of  such  corporation,  who  violates  any  regulation  of  said 
state  board,  shall  forfeit  not  less  than  twenty  nor  more  than  five  hun- 
dred dollars.    (Pub.  Stats.,  c.  107,  §  5.) 

IMPURE  ICE. 

26.  Upon  complaint  in  writing  of  not  less  than  twenty-five  con- 
sumers of  ice  which  is  cut,  sold,  and  held  for  sale  from  any  pond  or 
stream  in  this  Commonwealth,  alleging  that  said  ice  is  impure  and 
injurious  to  health,  the  state  board  of  health  may  appoint  a  time  and 
place  for  hearing  parties  to  be  affected  and  give  clue  notice  thereof  to 
such  parties,  and  after  such  hearing  said  board  may  make  such  orders 
concerning  the  sale  of  said  ice  as  in  its  judgment  the  public  health 
requires.    (1886,  c.  287,  §  1.) 

27.  The  supreme  judicial  court  in  term  time  or  vacation  may  issue 
an  injunction  to  enforce  such  orders  of  the  state  board.  (1886,  c.  287, 
§2.) 

28.  Such  orders  of  the  state  board  of  health  shall  be  served  upon  any 
person  or  persons  who  are  or  have  been  selling  said  impure  ice,  and 
any  party  aggrieved  thereby  shall  have  the  right  of  appeal  to  a  jury 
and  be  subject  to  the  provisions  of  sections  eighty-eight,  eighty-nine 
and  ninety  of  chapter  eighty  of  the  Public  Statutes,  and  the  court  may 
render  such  judgment  as  to  costs  as  in  its  discretion  may  seem  just. 
(1886,  c.  287,  §  3.) 

WATER  SUPPLIES  AND  SEWERAGE. 

29.  Water  boards,  water  commissioners,  and  water  companies  mak- 
ing use,  as  a  source  of  water  supply,  of  any  pond,  stream,  reservoir,  or 
well,  within  the  Commonwealth,  and  distributing  the  waters  thereof 
for  public,  domestic,  and  general  uses,  shall  make  returns  to  the  state 
board  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  November  in  every  third  year, 
beginning  with  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and  eighty-two,  of  the  facts 
hereinafter  enumerated :  provided,  that  the  expense  incurred  by  any 
such  board,  commissioners,  or  company,  shall  not  exceed  fifty  dollars. 
(Pub.  Stats.,  c.  80,  §  103.) 

30.  The  state  board  shall  publish  triennially,  in  its  report  to  the 
legislature,  the  returns  received,  arranged  by  counties  separately,  and 
those  from  each  county  alphabetically.    (Pub.  Stats.,  c.  80,  §  103.) 


125 


31.  The  state  board  shall,  on  application  from  the  parties  who  are 
requirecTto  make  said  returns,  furnish  the  requisite  blanks*  therefor; 
and  any  water  board,  commissioners,  or  company  required  to  make 
said  returns  shall,  for  every  neglect  or  failure  so  to  do,  forfeit  fifty 
dollars  to  the  use  of  the  local  board  of  health,  or  the  proper  officers 
acting  as  such,  of  the  city  or  town  in  which  such  delinquent  has  its 
principal  office.    (Pub.  Stats.,  c.  80,  §  104.) 

32.  The  state  board  shall  prosecute,  by  an  action  of  tort  in  the  name 
of  the  Commonwealth,  for  the  recovery  of  the  penalty  or  forfeit  herein 
imposed.    (Pub.  Stats.,  c.  SO,  §  105.) 

33.  The  state  board  of  health  shall  have  the  general  oversight  and 
care  of  all  inland  waters.    (1888,  c.  375,  §  1.) 

34.  It  shall  be  furnished  with  maps,  plans  and  documents  suitable 
for  this  purpose.    (1888,  c.  375,  §  1.) 

35.  Records  of  all  its  doings  in  relation  thereto  shall  be  kept. 
(1888,  c.  375,  §  1.) 

36.  It  may  employ  such  engineers  and  clerks  and  other  assistants 
as  it  may  deem  necessary :  provided,  that  no  contracts  or  other  acts 
which  involve  the  payment  of  money  from  the  treasury  of  the  Com- 
monwealth shall  be  made  or  done  without  an  appropriation  expressly 
made  therefor  by  the  general  court.    (1888,  c.  375,  §  1.) 

37.  It  shall  annually,  on  or  before  the  tenth  clay  of  January,  report 
to  the  general  court  its  doings  in  the  preceding  year.  (1888,  c. 
375,  §  1.) 

38.  At  the  same  time  it  shall  submit  estimates  of  the  sums  required 
to  meet  the  expenses  of  said  board  in  relation  to  the  care  and  oversight 
of  inland  waters  for  the  ensuing  year.    (1888,  c.  375,  §  1.) 

39.  It  shall  also  recommend  legislation  and  suitable  plans  for  such 
systems  of  main  sewers  as  it  may  deem  necessary  for  the  preservation 
of  the  public  health  and  for  the  purification  and  prevention  of  pollution 
of  the  ponds,  streams  and  inland  waters  of  the  Commonwealth.  (1888, 
c.  375,  §  1.) 

40.  It  shall  from  time  to  time  as  it  may  deem  expedient,  cause  ex- 
aminations of  the  said  waters  to  be  made  for  the  purpose  of  ascertain- 
ing whether  the  same  are  adapted  for  use  as  sources  of  domestic  water 
supplies  or  are  in  a  condition  likely  to  impair  the  interests  of  the 
public  or  persons  lawfully  using  the  same,  or  imperil  the  public  health. 
(1888,  c.  375,  §  2.) 

41.  It  shall  recommend  measures  for  prevention  of  the  pollution  of 
such  waters  and  for  removal  of  substances  and  causes  of  every  kind 
which  may  be  liable  to  cause  pollution  thereof,  in  order  to  protect  and 
develop  the  rights  and  property  of  the  Commonwealth  therein  and  to 
protect  the  public  health.    (1888,  c.  375,  §  2.) 

42.  It  shall  have  authority  to  conduct  experiments  to  determine  the 
best  practicable  methods  of  purification  of  drainage  and  sewage  or 
disposal  of  the  same.    (1888,  c.  375,  §  2.) 


*  For  the  blauk  forms  required  by  this  act  see  Manual,  page  51. 


126 


43.  For  the  purposes  aforesaid  it  may  employ  such  expert  assist- 
ance as  may  be  necessary.    (1888,  c.  375,  §  2.) 

44.  It  shall  from  time  to  time  consult  with  and  advise  the  authorities 
of  cities  and  towns,  or  with  corporations,  firms  or  individuals  either 
already  having  or  intending  to  introduce  systems  of  water  supply, 
drainage,  or  sewerage,  as  to  the  most  appropriate  source  of  supply,  the 
best  practicable  method  of  assuring  the  purity  thereof  or  of  disposing 
of  their  drainage  or  sewage,  having  regard  to  the  present  and  prospec- 
tive needs  and  interests  of  other  cities,  towns,  corporations,  firms  or 
individuals  which  may  be  affected  thereby.    (1888,  c.  375,  §  3.) 

45.  It  shall  also  from  time  to  time  consult  with  and  advise  persons 
or  corporations  engaged  or  intending  to  engage'  in  any  manufacturing 
or  other  business,  drainage  or  sewage  from  which  may  tend  to  cause 
the  pollution  of  any  inland  water,  as  to  the  best  practicable  method  of 
preventing  such  pollution  by  the  interception,  disposal  or  purification 
of  such  drainage  or  sewage :  provided,  that  no  person  shall  be  com- 
pelled to  bear  the  expense  of  such  consultation  or  advice,  or  of 
experiments  made  for  the  purposes  of  this  act.    (1888,  c.  375,  §  3.) 

46.  All  such  authorities,  corporations,  firms  and  individuals  are 
hereby  required  to  give  notice  to  said  board  of  their  intentions  in  the 
premises,  and  to  submit  for  its  advice. outlines  of  their  proposed  plans 
or  schemes  in  relation  to  water  supply  and  disposal  of  drainage  and 
sewage,  and  all  petitions  to  the  legislature  for  authority  to  introduce 
a  system  of  water  supply,  drainage  or  sewerage  shall  be  accompanied 
by  a  copy  of  the  recommendation  and  advice  of  the  said  board  thereon. 
(1888,  c.  375,  §  3.) 

47.  It  shall  bring  to  the  notice  of  the  attorney-general  all  instances 
which  may  come  to  its  knowledge  of  omission  to  comply  with  existing 
laws  respecting  the  pollution  of  water  supplies  and  inland  waters  and 
shall  annually  report  to  the  legislature  any  specific  cases  not  covered 
by  the  provisions  of  existing  laws,  which  in  its  opinion  call  for  further 
legislation.    (1888,  c.  375,  §  3.) 

48.  Cities  and  towns  may  with  the  approval  of  the  state  board  of 
health,  obtained  after  a  public  hearing  by  the  board  of  all  parties  inter- 
ested, purchase  or  take  land  within  their  respective  limits  for  the 
purification  and  disposal  of  sewage.    (1890,  c.  124.) 

49.  The  board  shall  give  notice  of  such  hearings  by  publication  in 
such  newspapers  and  at  such  times  as  it  may  deem  proper.  (1890, 
c.  124.) 

50.  The  state  board  of  health  shall  have  the  general  supervision  of 
all  streams  and  ponds  used  by  a  city  or  town  as  sources  of  water  sup- 
ply, with  reference  to  their  purity,  together  with  all  springs,  streams 
and  water-courses  tributary  thereto.    (1890,  c.  441,  §  1.) 

51.  It  shall  have  authority  to  examine  the  same  from  time  to  time 
and  inquire  what  pollutions  exist  and  what  are  their  causes.  (1890, 
c.  441,  §  1.) 

52.  Whenever  the  mayor  of  a  city  or  the  selectmen  of  a  town,  using 
a  stream  or  pond  as  a  source  of  water  supply,  complains  to  said  state 


127 


board  of  health  that  manure,  excrement,  garbage,  sewage  or  any  other 
matter  is  so  deposited,  kept  or  discharged  within  one  hundred  feet  of 
the  high  water  mark  of  any  such  stream  or  pond,  or  any  stream,  pond, 
spring  or  water-course  tributary  thereto,  as  to  pollute  or  tend  to  pol- 
lute the  waters  of  such  stream,  pond,  spring  or  water-course,  the  said 
board  of  health  shall  appoint  a  time  and  place  for  hearing  parties  to  be 
affected,  and  give  due  notice  thereof  to  such  parties.    (1890,  c.  441,  §  2.) 

53.  After  such  hearing,  if  in  its  judgment  the  public  health  requires 
it.  il  may  prohibit  the  deposit,  keeping  or  discharge  of  any  such  mate- 
rial as  aforesaid,  and  may  order  any  person  to  desist  therefrom  and  to 
remove  any  such  material  theretofore  deposited.    (1890,  c.  441,  §  2.) 

54.  It  shall  not  prohibit  the  use  of  any  structure  as  was  customary 
at  the  time  of  the  passage  of  this  act,  unless  the  mayor  of  the  city  or 
the  selectmen  of  the  town  making  the  complaint  shall  file  with  said 
state  board  of  health  an  agreement  in  writing  that  such  city  or  town 
shall  at  its  own  expense  make  such  changes  in  said  structure  or  its 
location  as  said  board  shall  deem  expedient,  and  such  agreement  shall 
be  binding  on  such  city  or  town.    (1890,  c.  441,  §  2.) 

55.  When  such  changes  have  been  made  all  damages  occasioned 
thereby  shall  be  paid  by  such  city  or  town.    (1890,  c.  441,  §  2.) 

56.  If  the  parties  cannot  agree  thereon,  such  damages  shall  be 
determined  by  a  jury  on  petition  of  either  party  filed  in  the  clerk's 
office  of  the  superior  court,  in  the  manner  provided  by  law  in  relation 
to  determining  the  damages  occasioned  by  taking  land  for  highways 
in  such  cify  or  town.    (1890,  c.  441,  §  2.) 

57.  Said  board  shall  not  prohibit  the  cultivation  and  use  of  the  soil 
in  the  ordinary  methods  of  husbandry,  provided  no  human  excrement 
be  used  thereon.    (1890,  c.  441,  §  2.) 

58.  Any  person  aggrieved  by  an  order  passed  under  this  act  may 
appeal  therefrom;  and  if  he  shall,  within  ten  days  from  the  service 
of  such  order  upon  him,  file  a  petition  in  the  clerk's  office  of  the  superior 
court  in  the  county  where  the  premises  are  located,  with  reference  to 
which  such  order  is  made,  for  a  jury,  a  trial  may,  after  such  notice  as 
the  court  shall  order  to  the  said  board  of  health  and  the  mayor  of  the 
city  or  the  chairman  of  the  selectmen  of  a  town  interested  in  such 
order,  be  had  at  the  bar  of  the  court  in  the  same  maimer  as  other  civil 
cases  are  tried  by  jury.    (1890,  c.  441,  §  3.) 

59.  If  a  person  by  mistake  of  law  or  fact  or  by  accident  fails  to 
appeal  from  any  such  order  and  to  file  his  petition  for  a  jury  within  ten 
days,  and  if  he  makes  it  appear  to  the  court  or  justice  that  such  fail- 
ure was  caused  by  mistake  or  accident  and  that  he  has  not  since  the 
service  of  such  order  upon  him  violated  such  order,  he  may  at  any 
time  within  thirty  days  from  the  service  of  the  order  upon  him  appeal 
therefrom  and  file  his  petition  for  a  jury  with  the  same  effect  as  if  done 
within  the  said  ten  days.    (1890,  c.  441,  §  3.) 

60.  During  the  pendency  of  the  appeal  the  order  of  the  said  board 
of  health  shall  be  complied  with  unless  otherwise  authorized  by  said 
board  after  the  appeal.    (1890,  c.  441,  §  3.) 


128 


61.  The  verdict  of  the  jury,  which  may  either  alter  the  order  or 
affirm  or  annul  it  in  full,  when  accepted  by  the  court  shall  have  the 
authority  and  effect  of  and  may  be  enforced  in  the  same  way  as  an 
original  order  from  which  no  appeal  had  been  taken.    (1890,  c.  441, 

§3.) 

62.  Any  court  having-  equity  jurisdiction  may,  in  term  time  or 
vacation,  on  the  application  of  said  state  board  of  health  or  of  any  party 
interested,  by  any  suitable  process  or  decree  in  equity,  enforce  by 
injunction  or  otherwise  such  orders  of  said  board  of  health  or  of  said 
court.    (1890,  c.  441,  §  4.) 

63.  And  may  at  the  same  time  issue  an  injunction  to  restrain,  until 
the  orders  of  said  board  have  been  complied  with,  the  use  or  occupa- 
tion of  the  premises  within  said  distance  of  one  hundred  feet  on  which 
the  said  material  is  deposited  or  kept.    (1890,  c.  441,  §  4.) 

64.  Whoever  deposits,  keeps  or  discharges  on  his  premises  any 
material  in  violation  of  such  order  of  prohibition,  after  the  same  has 
been  served  upon  him  as  aforesaid,  shall  forfeit  a  sum  not  exceeding 
ten  dollars  for  each  and  every  day  until  such  order  is  complied  with. 
(1890,  c.  441,  §  5.) 

65.  This  act  shall  not  be  construed  to  impair  or  repeal  any  existing 
provision  of  law  in  regard  to  the  pollution  of  springs,  streams,  ponds 
or  water-courses,  or  the  prevention  of  such  pollution,  or  the  powers 
and  jurisdiction  of  any  court  relating  to  the  prevention  of  such  pollu- 
tion; nor  shall  it  be  applicable  to  the  Merrimac  or  Connecticut  rivers, 
nor  to  so  much  of  the  Concord  river  as  lies  within  the  limits  of  the 
city  of  Lowell.    (1890,  c.  441,  §  6.) 

66.  All  hearings  granted  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  this 
act  shall  be  held  in  the  city  or  town  in  which  the  nuisance  or  pollution 
is  alleged  to  exist.    (1890,  c.  441,  §  7.) 

CREMATORIES. 

67.  The  state  board  of  health  may  determine  the  proper  location  of 
crematories  established  by  corporations  organized  for  the  purpose  of 
incinerating  the  bodies  of  the  dead.  No  building  shall  be  erected, 
occupied  or  used  by  such  corporation  until  the  location  and  plans 
thereof,  with  all  details  of  construction,  have  been  submitted  to  and 
approved  by  said  board  or  some  person  designated  by  it  to  examine 
them.    (1885,  c.  265,  §  2.) 

68.  Every  such  corporation  may  make  by-laws  and  regulations  con- 
sistent with  law  and  subject  to'the  approval  of  said  state  board,  for  the 
reception  and  cremation  of  bodies  of  deceased  persons,  and  for  the 
disposition  of  the  ashes  remaining  therefrom,  and  shall  carry  on  all  its 
business  in  accordance  with  such  regulations  as  said  board  shall  from 
time  to  time  establish  and  furnish  in  writing  to  the  clerk  of  the  cor- 
poration.   (1885,  c.  265,  §  3.) 

FOOD  AND  DRUG  INSPECTION. 

69.  The  state  board  of  health  shall  take  cognizance  of  the  interests 
of  the  public  health  relating  to  the  sale  of  drugs  and  food  and  the 
adulteration  of  the  same.    (1882,  c.  263,  §  5.) 


129 


70.  It  shall  make  all  necessary  investigations  and  inquiries  in  ref- 
erence thereto.    (1882,  c  263,  §  5.) 

71.  For  these  purposes  it  may  appoint  inspectors,  analysts  and 
chemists,  who  shall  be  subject  to  its  supervision  and  removal.  (1882, 
c.  263,  §  5.) 

72.  The  said  board  shall  adopt  such  measures  as  it  may  deem 
necessary  to  facilitate  the  enforcement  of  this  act,  and  shall  prepare 
rules  and  regulations  with  regard  to  the  proper  methods  of  collecting 
and  examining  drugs  and  articles  of  food.    (1882,  c.  263,  §  5.) 

73.  Said  board  may  expend  annually  an  amount  not  exceeding  ten 
thousand  dollars  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  out  the  provisions  of  this 
act.    (18,82,  c.  263,  §  5.) 

74.  Not  less  than  three-fifths  of  said  amount  shall  be  annually 
expended  for  the  enforcement  of  the  laws  against  the  adulteration  of 
milk  and  milk  products.    (1882,  c.  263,  §  5.) 

75.  Samples  of  food  or  drugs  are  to  be  furnished  to  any  officer  or 
agent  of  the  board  who  applies  for  the  same  and  offers  its  value. 
(1882,  c.  263,  §  6.) 

76.  Whoever  obstructs  such  officers  is  liable  to  punishment.  (1882, 
c.  263,  §  7.) 

77.  The  state  board  of  health  shall  report  annually  to  the  legislature 
the  number  of  prosecutions  made  under  said  chapter,  and  an  itemized 
account  of  all  money  expended  in  carrying  out  the  provisions  thereof. 
(1884,  c.  289,  §  2.) 

78.  An  inspector  of  the  state  board  shall  have  the  same  powers  and 
authority  conferred  upon  a  city  or  town  inspector  by  section  two  of 
chapter  fifty-seven  of  the  Public  Statutes  with  reference  to  the  collec- 
tion of  samples  of  milk.    (1884,  c.  289,  §  3.) 

79.  Inspectors  of  the  state  board  shall  have  the  power  and  authority 
conferred  upon  a  city  or  town  inspector  by  section  one  of  chapter 
three  hundred  and  eighteen  of  the  acts  of  eighteen  hundred  and  eighty- 
six  with  reference  to  the  collection  of  samples  of  milk.  They  shall 
also  have  the  power  and  authority  conferred  upon  inspectors  of  milk 
by  section  twenty  of  chapter  fifty-six  of  the  Public  Statutes  with  refer- 
ence to  the  collection  of  samples  of  butter,  or  imitation  butter.  (1885, 
c.  352,  §  5.) 


The  following  statutes  relate  to  certain  general  duties  of 
the  Board  which  were  not  included  in  the  preceding  digest  of 
laws  :  — 

[Pub.  Stat.,  Chap.  4.] 

Sect.  5.  The  annual  reports  which  are  required  by  law  or  custom 
to  be  made  to  the  governor  and  council,  to  the  general  court,  to  the 
secretary  of  the  commonwealth,  or  to  the  governor  to  be  by  him  trans- 
mitted to  the  general  court,  shall,  except  when  other  provision  is  made, 
include  the  year  ending  on  the  thirtieth  day  of  September,  and  be 


130 


submitted  to  the  secretary  of  the  commonwealth  on  or  before  the 
fifteenth  day  of  October;  and  whoever  wilfully  neglects  to  make  and 
transmit  a  report  as  required  by  this  section  shall  forfeit  ten  dollars 
for  each  day  such  neglect  continues. 

Sect.  6.  Public  officers  and  boards,  and  managers  of  public  insti- 
tutions, shall,  in  addition  to  their  annual  reports,  make  special  reports 
when  the  public  interests  require  them. 

Sect.  7.  There  shall  be  printed  annually,  on  or  before  the  assem- 
bling of  the  general  court,  or  as  soon  thereafter  as  possible,  the  number 
of  copies  of  documents  and  reports  specified  in  the  following  list,  the 
same  to  be  numbered  in  a  series  to  be  called  Public  Documents,  and 
distributed  as  herein  provided.  Said  reports  shall  be  made  as  brief  as 
may  be  without  omitting  any  facts  or  information  which  the  officers 
or  departments  making  them  are  required  by  law  to  furnish  therein, 
and  they  shall  be  transmitted  to  the  general  court  through  the  office  of 
the  secretary  of  the  commonwealth.  No  larger  number  of  copies  than 
is  herein  provided  for  shall  be  printed  at  the  expense  of  the  common- 
wealth, or  be  paid  for  out  of  any  contingent  fund  or  out  of  the  earn- 
ings of  any  department  or  institution,  where  such  earnings  are  the 
property  of  the  commonwealth;  and  no  bill  for  printing  any  larger 
number  shall  be  approved  by  the  auditor  or  paid  out  of  any  funds 
belonging  to  the  commonwealth.  .  .  .  Report  of  the  state  board 
of  health  five  thousand  copies. 

Sect.  8.  Five  hundred  copies  of  each  of  the  series  of  public  docu- 
ments named  in  the  preceding  section  shall  be  retained  by  the  state 
printers  for  binding  in  sets ;  and  the  secretary  of  the  commonwealth 
shall  furnish  one  set,  in  a  bound  volume  with  a  brief  index,  to  each 
city  or  town  in  the  commonwealth,  to  be  preserved  in  some  public 
place  therein,  and  one  set  to  such  public  and  other  libraries  as  he  in 
his  discretion  may  select.  All  public  documents,  the  distribution  of 
whicfi  is  not  otherwise  provided  for,  shall  be  distributed  under  direc- 
tion of  the  secretary  of  the  commonwealth  and  of  the  secretaries  or 
heads  of  the  several  boards  or  departments  to  which  they  relate. 

Sect.  10.  Each  member  of  the  executive  and  legislative  depart- 
ment, the  clerks  of  both  branches  of  the  general  court,  and  each 
reporter  assigned  a  seat  in  either  branch,  shall  be  entitled  to  receive 
one  copy  of  each  of  the  books  named  in  sections  seven  and  nine. 
Each  member  of  the  general  court  and  the  clerks  of  the  two  branches 
shall  also  be  entitled  to  receive  .  .  .  seven  additional  copies  of 
the  report  of  the  state  board  of  health. 

BOARD  OF  SUPERVISORS  OF  STATISTICS. 
[Pub.  Stat.,  Chap.  31.] 

Sect.  17.  The  secretary  of  the  commonwealth,  the  secretaries  of 
the  boards  of  agriculture,  of  education,  and  of  the  state  board  of  health, 
and  the  chief  of  the  bureau  of  statistics  of  labor,  shall  constitute  a 
board  of  supervisors  of  statistics,  who  shall  serve  without  pay.  A 
member  of  said  board  shall  be  appointed  chairman  thereof  by  the  gov- 


131 


ernor  with  the  advice  of  the  council,  aud  shall  have  power  to  appoint 
a  secretary.  The  board  shall  meet  regularly  at  the  state  house  at 
Least  once  in  each  month,  and  at  other  times  when  called  together  by 
the  chairman. 

Sect.  18.  The  board  shall  have  general  supervision  on  all  matters 
relating  to  the  statistics  to  be  gathered  and  reported  by  either  of  the 
departments  represented  on  the  board.  Any  investigation  contem- 
plated by  either  of  said  departments  shall,  before  it  is  made,  be 
reported  to  the  board,  which  shall  so  direct  the  method  thereof  as  to 
prevent  unnecessary  work,  and  to  make  plain  the  presentation  of  the 
facts,  and  shall  simplify  and  abridge,  as  far  as  may  be,  the  statistical 
matter  to  be  presented  by  any  department  represented,  and,  when  such 
matter  is  germane  to  that  under  the  care  of  another  department,  shall 
see  that  such  matters  are  consolidated  and  presented  by  one  depart- 
ment only. 

Sect.  19.  A  sum  not  exceeding  five  hundred  dollars  shall  be 
allowed  said  board  for  annual  contingent  expenses. 


Note.  —  The  statutes  relative  to  cattle  diseases  printed  on  pages  59  and  60  of  this 
Manual,  comprising  the  sections  numbered  154,  155,  156  and  157  (Acts  of  1884,  c.  232), 
are  practically  rendered  null  and  void,  no  appropriation  having  been  made  for  their 
execution  since  the  first  year  of  enactment. 


INDEX. 


« 


INDEX. 


Page 

Adulterated  bread,  statutes  relative  to   72 

Butter,  statutes  relative  to   85-88 

Cheese,  statutes  relative  to   86 

Chocolate,  statutes  relative  to   92 

Drugs,  statutes  relative  to   70 

Food,  statutes  relative  to   71 

Lard,  statutes  relative  to   88 

Liquors,  statutes  relative  to   73 

Medicine,  statutes  relative  to   73 

Milk,  statutes  relative  to   75-84 

Vinegar,  statutes  relative  to   92,  93 

Adulteration  of  Food  and  Drugs. 

General  laws  relative  to   70 

Prohibited   70 

Definition  of  term  "  food  "   70 

Of  term  "drug"   70 

Drugs,  how  adulterated   70 

U.  S.  Pharmacopoeia  the  standard  of  officinal  drugs   70 

Officinal  drugs  may  be  sold  as  called  for,  or  as  their  variation  is  made 

known  to  purchaser   70 

Food,  how  adulterated   70 

Exceptions   71 

Drugs,  pharmacopceial  standard,  change  of   71 

State  board  of  health  to  make  investigations  and  appoint  officers  ...  71 

Regulations  to  be  made   71 

Appropriations  for  executing  the  laws     ........  71 

Three-fifths  to  be  expended  in  enforcing  the  statutes  relative  to  adultera- 
tion of  milk  and  its  products   71 

Samples  to  be  furnished  to  officers  and  agents   71 

Penalty  for  obstruction  of  officers   72 

State  board  to  report  prosecutions  and  expenditures   72 

Inspectors  under  act  of  1882  to  have  equal  powers  with  local  inspectors        .  72 

Act  of  1882  does  not  repeal  or  amend  chapter  57  of  Public  Statutes       .       .  72 

Samples  to  be  sealed  for  benefit  of  defendant   72 

Penalty  for  selling  corrupt  or  unwholesome  provisions   72 

For  fraudulently  adulterating  bread  or  other  food   72 

For  adulterating  liquors   73 

For  adulterating  drugs  or  medicines     .  •   73 

Sale  of  poisons  to  be  recorded   73 

Penalty  for  neglect  or  refusal  to  show  record   73 

Labels  to  be  attached  to  poisons   74 

Penalty  for  neglecting  to  affix  label   74 

For  giving  fictitious  name   74 


136 


Agents  and  Assistants  to  Local  Boards  of  Health.  Page 

May  be  appointed   13,  14 

Compensation  of   13 

Authority  of   14 

To  report  to  board  of  health   14 

May  make  complaints   15 

Alcoholic  Drinks. 

Effects  of,  instruction  in  public  schools   G5 

Analysts,  appointed  by  State  Board  of  Health. 

Penalty  for  hindering  or  obstructing   72 

To  reserve  samples  for  defendant   72 

Their  duties  specified   94-97 

Appeals  from  decision  of  analyst   99 

Appeal. 

None  lies  from  adjudication  that  nuisance  exists  '  .  17 

Party  aggrieved  by  decision  of  board  of  health  as  to  wet  lands  may  appeal 

to  superior  court   22 

In  case  of  damages  awarded  concerning  wet  lands  may  appeal  to  county 

commissioners   24 

Party  aggrieved  by  assessment  may  apply  for  a  jury   24 

In  case  of  neglect  or  refusal  of  board  of  health  to  act   26 

Notice  to  be  given  to  opposite  party   26 

Necessary  proceedings   26 

Costs  and  expenses,  how  paid   26 

In  case  of  offensive  trades,  from  order  of  board  of  health       ....  41 

Costs  in  appeal,  in  matter  of  offensive  trades   43 

In  case  of  offensive  trades,  from  order  of  state  board   45 

Of  tombs  closed  by  order  of  board  of  health                                         .  56 

Of  land  taken  for  isolation  of  infected  animals   62 

From  decision  of  analyst   99 

With  reference  to  orders  prohibiting  pollution  of  water  supplies  .  .  .  119 
Appropriation. 

Boards  of  health  acting  under  chapter  80,  section  28,  of  Public  Statutes, 

limited  to  $ 2,000,  if  no  appropriation  is  made  by  town    .      .      .      .  22 

For  carrying  on  work  of  food  and  drug  inspection   71 

Three-fifths  to  be  expended  in  enforcing  laws  against  adulteration  of  milk 

and  its  products   71 

Autopsies,  Medico-Legal,  Laws  relating  to.    (Sec  Medical  Examiners.) 
Barnstable  County. 

Medical  examiner  districts   105 

Bathing. 

In  water  supplies  prohibited   50 

Berkshire  County. 

Medical  examiner  districts   105 

Births,  Registration  of.    (See  Registration  of  Births,  Marriages,  Deaths,  etc.) 
Board  of  Health.    (See  State  Board  of  Health,  City  Boards  of  Health  and 
Town  Boards  of  Health.) 

Bread. 

Penalty  for  fraudulently  adulterating   72 

Bristol  County. 

Medical  examiner  districts   106 

Burial-grounds.    (See  Cemeteries.) 
Burials. 

Not  permitted  until  certificate  given   56 

Certificate,  what  to  contain   56 

To  be  approved  by  board  of  health   56 

To  be  approved  by  chairman  of  board  of  health   56 


137 


Burials  —  Concluded. 

Certificate  to  be  approved  by  city  or  town  physician 
To  be  approved  by  medical  examiner    .      .      .      .  . 

Undertakers  to  be  licensed  

Sepulture,  violation  of  

Board  of  health  to  regulate  

Penalty  for  violating  regulations  

Decisions.    (See  Decisions  of  Supreme  Judicial  Court.) 
Butter. 

Spurious,  to  be  marked  in  wholesale  and  in  retail  packages  . 

Fraudulent  sales  of,  penalty  

Complaints  relative  to,  how  instituted  

Term  "butter"  defined  

Spurious  butter  not  to  be  marked  as  "  dairy  "  or  "  creamery  " 

Persons  selling  from  carriages  to  be  licensed  . 
Selling  at  stores  or  markets  to  be  registered  . 
Calves  under  Four  Weeks  old. 

Sale  of  meat  prohibited  

Cases. 

Belcher  v.  Farrar,  8  Allen,  327   

Brown  v.  Murdock,  140  Mass.  314  

Cavanagh  v.  City  of  Boston,  139  Mass.  426  . 
Commonwealth  v.  W.  N.  Alden,  143  Mass.  113       .  . 
Commonwealth  v.  Bowers,  140  Mass.  483  . 
Commonwealth  v.  Boynton,  12  dishing,  499  . 
Commonwealth  v.  Carter,  132  Mass.  12  .... 
Commonwealth  v.  Evans,  132  Mass.  11  .... 
Commonwealth  v.  Fahey,  5  Gushing,  408-411  . 
Commonwealth  v.  Farren,  9  Allen,  489  .... 
Commonwealth  v.  Goodrich,  13  Allen,  546 
Commonwealth  v.  Haynes,  107  Mass.  194 .... 
Commonwealth  v.  Holt,  146  Mass.  38  ... 
Commonwealth  v.  Keenan,  139  Mass.  193 
Commonwealth  v.  J.  H.  Kennison,  143  Mass.  418  . 
Commonwealth  v.  C.  W.  Lockhardt,  144  Mass.  132 
Commonwealth  v.  McCarron,  2  Allen,  157 
Commonwealth  v.  Nichols,  10  Allen,  199  .... 
Commonwealth  v.  O'Donnell,  1  Allen,  593 
Commonwealth  v.  Patch,  97  Mass.  221-224 
Commonwealth  v.  Perry,  139  Mass.  198  . 
Commonwealth  v.  Raymond,  97  Mass.  567 
Commonwealth  v.  Rowell,  146  Mass.  128  . 
Commonwealth  v.  Rumford  Chemical  Works,  16  Gray,  231 
Commonwealth  v.  Schaffner,  146  Mass.  512 
Commonwealth  v.  Slack,  19  Pickering,  306 
Commonwealth  v.  C.  A.  Smith,  141  Mass.  135  . 
Commonwealth  v.  W.  Smith,  143  Mass.  169 
t  Commonwealth  v.  F.  W.  Spear,  143  Mass.  172 . 
Commonwealth  v.  Swasey,  133  Mass.  538 .... 
Commonwealth  v.  A.  Tobias,  149  Mass.  129 
Commonwealth  v.  Welch,  144  Mass.  357  .... 
Commonwealth  v.  Young,  135  Mass.  526  .... 
Grace  v.  Newton  Board  of  Health,  135  Mass.  490  . 
Jackman  v.  Arlington  Mills,  137  Mass.  277      .  . 

Martin  v.  Gleason,  139  Mass.  183  

Provincetown,  Inhabitants  of,  v.  Smith,  120  Mass.  96 
Salem,  City  of,  v.  Eastern  Railroad  Co.,  98  Mass.  431-451 


138 


Cases  —  Concluded.  Page 
Sawyer  v.  State  Board  of  Health,  125  Mass.  191-196       ....     40,  43,  45 

Somerville  v.  O'Neil,  114  Mass.  353    45 

Spring  v.  Hyde  Park,  137  Mass.  554    29 

Springfield,  Inhabitants  of,  v.  Inhabitants  of  Worcester,  2  Cushing,  52  .      .  28 

Taunton  v.  Taylor,  116  Mass.  254-261    11,  39-43 

Train  (S.  P.)  and  another  v.  Boston  Disinfecting  Company,  144  Mass.  523   .  36 

Vandine,  petitioner,  6  Pickering,  187   15 

Watertown  v.  Mayo,  109  Mass.  315-318   44,  45 

Watertown  v.  Sawyer,  109  Mass.  320       .    44 

Watuppa  Reservoir  Co.  v.  Colin  McKenzie,  132  Mass.  71       ....  17,  25 

Winthrop  v.  Farrar,  11  Allen,  398-402    20,  40,  41 

Withington  v.  Inhabitants  of  Harvard,  8  Cushing,  68   54 

Cattle. 

Contagious  diseases  among   59 

To  be  appointed   59 

Compensation  of   59 

Removals   59 

Vacancies   59 

Commissioners  to  make  inquiries  relative  to  abortion   59 

May  make  experiments  and  exercise  other  powers   59 

May  kill  sick  animals  ■ .  60 

Appropriation   60 

Boards  of  health  to  cause  infected  animals  to  be  quarantined  ....  60 

Expense  to  be  paid  by  cities  and  towns   60 

May  prohibit  departure  of  animals  and  appoint  agents    .      .      .      .      .  60 

May  make  regulations,  arrest  and  detain  animals   60 

Regulations  to  be  recorded  and  published   60 

Penalty  for  disobedience   61 

Notice  to  be  given  to  board  as  to  diseased  animals   61 

Penalty  for  disobedience   61 

Board  of  health  to  examine  suspected  animals   61 

To  inform  cattle  commissioners   61 

Penalty  for  neglect     .    61 

Board  of  health  may  take  land  and  estimate  damages     .      .      .      .      .  61 

Expenses,  how  paid   61 

Owner  may  recover  by  action   62 

Commissioners  may  cause  infected  animals  to  be  killed  and  buried       .      .  62 

May  cause  such  animals  to  be  appraised  and  paid  for  *   62 

Certain  animals  to  be  killed  without  appraisement   62 

Regulations  of,  to  supersede  those  of  boards  of  health   62 

Powers  and  authority  ■  .      .      .      .      .      .  62 

May  establish  hospitals  or  quarantines   62 

*       May  direct  boards  of  health   62 

Penalty  for  non-compliance   63 

Reasonable  expenses  of  owner  to  be  paid   63 

Prosecutions  may  be  maintained  in  any  county   63 

Appraisements  to  be  in  writing  and  certified   63 

Carcasses  may  be  inspected  and  sold,  when   63 

Commissioners  to  keep  record  and  report  to  legislature  ^   63 

May  administer  oaths   63 

Certain  animals  may  be  seized,  quarantined  and  killed   64 

Certain  cattle  not  to  be  driven  on  streets   64 

Certain  cattle  to  be  separated  in  pens   64 

Penalty  for  violation   64 

Repeal  of  former  statutes   64 


139 

Cemeteries.    (See  Tombs.)  Page 

Lots  in,  to  be  held  indivisible   54 

One  of  heirs  to  represent  lot   54 

Board  of  health  to  regulate      .  •   54 

Regulations,  notice  of,  to  be  given   55 

Penalty  for  violating  regulations   55 

Tombs,  when  and  how  closed   55 

Appeal  from  order  of  board   56 

To  be  tried  by  a  jury   57 

Decisions.    (See  Decisions  of  Supreme  Judicial  Court.) 

Cheese. 

Spurious,  wholesale  and  retail  packages  to  be  marked   85 

Penalty  for  fraudulent  sale   86 

Term  "  cheese "  defined   87 

Chemist. 

State  board  may  appoint   71 

May  be  called  to  aid  medical  examiner   112 

Chocolate. 

To  be  stamped   92 

Its  sale  regulated   92 

Grades  or  qualities  specified   92 

May  be  seized  if  not  of  required  quality   92 

City  Boards  of  Health. 

How  appointed  and  established   11,  12 

City  council  to  be,  if  none  appointed   H 

May  appoint  physician   12 

To  establish  salaries  and  fees  of  employees   12 

Term  of  office    .   12 

Vacancies  in  office,  how  filled   12 

Members  subject  to  removal   12 

Compensation  of  members   12 

Organization  of   13 

May  choose  clerk   13 

Rules  and  regulations  of   .    13 

Powers  of   13 

Agents  and  assistants  of   13 

Compensation  of  agents   13 

Reports  to  city  council   13 

House  drainage,  may  enforce  regulations  with  reference  to     ...  14 

Legal  voters  to  be  notified  to  vote  on  certain  provisions   14 

May  contract  for  garbage  disposal   14 

In  case  of  severe  epidemic  cities  may  appoint  a  board  for  emergency    .      .  14 

City  physician,  how  appointed   14 

Board  of  health  may  appoint  agent   14 

Powers  and  duties  of  agents   15 

Retain  charge  to  exclusion  of  overseers  of  poor   15 

Nuisances,  to  make  regulations  respecting   15 

To  give  notice  of  regulations   15 

Nuisances,  to  examine,  prevent,  destroy  or  remove   16 

To  order  owner  to  remove  nuisance   16 

Order  for  abatement,  how  served   18 

Owner  failing  to  comply,  board  to  remove  nuisance   19 

Unfit  dwelling-houses  to  be  vacated   20 

May  order  nuisance  removed   20 

Injunction,  may  issue   21 

May  enter  premises  to  examine   21 

Expenses  incurred  may  be  sued  for   21 


140 

City  Boards  of  Health  —  Continued.  page 

Fines  to  inure  to  use  of  towns   21 

Wet,  rotten  and  spongy  lands,  powers  over   22 

Party  aggrieved  may  appeal  to  superior  couvt   22 

Must  give  notice  to  board  of  health   22 

Persons  injured  may  apply  to  board  for  abatement   22 

Board  to  appoint  hearing   23 

Form  of  notice,  how  served  .  23 

Board  may  abate  nuisance  after  hearing   23 

Party  aggrieved  may  apply  for  a  jury   24 

Return  to  be  made  to  city  or  town  clerk   24 

Superior  court  may  appoint  commissioners  if  board  of  health  refuses  to 

act   24 

Persons  aggrieved  in  award  of  damages  may  apply  for  jury      ...  24 

Refusal  of  board  of  health  to  act ;  appeal  to  county  commissioners      .      .  26 

Party  appealing  to  give  notice  to  opposite  party   26 

Expenses  of  commissioners,  how  paid   26 

To  receive  notice  from  householders  of  existence  of  infectious  diseases  .      .  27 

To  approve  mode  of  disinfection   27 

To  receive  notices  from  physicians  •  .      .      .  27 

To  keep  records  of  infectious  diseases   27 

To  give  notice  to  school  committees  ,  27 

To  be  provided  with  blank  books  for  recording  cases   27 

To  notify  state  board  of  cases  of  small-pox   27 

Forfeiture  of  claim  for  expenses   27 

Certificate  of  recovery  of  school  children  required   27 

Infected  articles,  may  grant  permits  to  remove   28 

Infected  persons,  may  make  provision  for   28 

May  prevent  travelling   29 

Two  justices  of  peace  may  issue  warrant  to  remove  infected  persons,  under 

direction  of  board   30 

Justice  of  peace  on  application  of  board  may  issue  warrant  to  secure  infected 

articles   30 

Officers  under  direction  of  board  may  take  houses  for  safe  keeping  of  infected 

articles   30 

Officers  under  direction  of  board  may  break  open  houses  and  command  aid,  30 

Expenses  to  be  paid  by  owner  of  goods   30 

Town  to  pay  for  houses  and  services   30 

Prisoners  attacked  with  dangerous  disease  may  be  removed  .  30 

Return  of  removal  to  be  made  to  superior  court   31 

Towns  may  establish  hospital  for  infectious  diseases   31 

Hospitals  for  persons  with  dangerous  diseases, -subject  to  orders  of    .  31 

Such  hospital  not  to  be  established  near  dwelling-house,  etc.      ...  31 

Physicians,  nurses,  etc.,  of  hospital  to  be  subject  to  board  of  health  .      .  31 

Hospitals  for  dangerous  diseases,  board  to  provide      ......  31 

Hospital  for  dangerous  diseases  not  to  be  occupied  without  authority       .  31 

Flags  to  be  displayed  in  case  of  infection   32 

Penalty  for  violating  regulations   32 

Certain  provisions  not  to  apply  to  small-pox   32 

Expenses,  how  to  be  paid   32 

Town  may  provide  for  vaccination,  under  direction  of  board  .      ...  34 

Lying-in  hospitals,  to  certify  in  certain  cases   34 

To  visit   34 

Infants  taken  to  board,  persons  engaged  in  business  to  notify       ...  35 

May  enter  and  inspect  house  where  infants  are  boarded   35 

Quarantine  of  vessels,  may  establish   35 

May  cause  suspected  vessels  to  be  ordered  to  quarantine  ground   ...  36 


141 

City  Boards  or  Health  —  Concluded.                                        '  page 

Offensive  trades,  places  may  be  assigned  for   38 

May  be  prohibited   38 

Tombs,  to  exercise  certain  powers  in  relation  to   54 

Regulations  may  be  made  relative  to  tombs  .......  54 

Penalties  may  be  established  in  relation  to  tombs   54 

Notice  of  regulations  to  be  published   55 

Burial-places,  certain  powers  in  relation  to   55 

Notice  to  be  given  to  parties  interested  before  closing  tombs       ...  55 

Provision  for  appeals  from  order  of  board  of  health   56 

Appeals  to  be  tried  before  a  jury   56 

Certificate  of  cause  of  death  to  be  approved  by   56 

Certificate  to  be  given  relative  to  transportation  of  dead  bodies      ...  57 

To  license  undertakers  •      .      .      .  57 

Penalty  for  disinterment  without  authority  of  board      .....  57 

Duties  in  relation  to  dangerous  diseases  of  cattle  60-62 

In  relation  to  sanitary  defects  in  factories  and  workshops  ....  67 

On  seizure  of  diseased  meats,  etc.,  by  inspector,  appeal  lies  to  89 

May  seize  veal  in  certain  cases   90 

May  require  certain  buildings  to  be  connected  with  sewer      .      .      .      .  118 
Decisions.    (See  Decisions  of  Supreme  Judicial  Court.) 
Clerk  of  Boards  of  Health. 

Not  to  be  a  member  of  the  board   13 

Compensation   13 

Color  Blindness  and  Defective  Sight. 

Railroad  corporations  to  examine  employees  with  reference  to  65 
Complaints. 

For  violation  of  statutes  relative  to  adulteration  of  butter  and  cheese,  how 

instituted   86 

CoMrouNDS  or  Mixtures. 

Provisions  as  to   71 

Contagious  Diseases.    (See  Dangerous  Diseases.) 

County  Commissioners. 

Appeal  to,  by  persons  aggrieved  by  refusal  to  abate  nuisance  ....  26 

Party  appealing,  to  give  notice  to  opposite  party   26 

Costs  and  expenses  of  commissioners,  how  paid   26 

Cream. 

Penalty  for  sale  of  milk  from  which  cream  has  been  removed  ...  82 
Cremation. 

Disposal  of  garbage  or  offal  by  cremation  or  otherwise  by  city  or  town  .      .  14 

Corporations  may  be  formed  for  incinerating  bodies  of  the  dead    ...  58 

May  hold  real  estate  as  approved  by  state  board   58 

May  make  by-laws  and  rules  subject  to  approval  of  board     ....  58 

No  body  to  be  cremated  within  forty-eight  hours  after  death  ....  58 

Certificate  of  medical  examiner  required  in  addition  to  usual  certificate  .  59 
Dangerous  Diseases. 

Powers  of  state  board       .   10 

Pupils  affected  with,  not  to  attend  public  schools   28 

Householders  to  give  notice  of   27 

Physicians  to  give  notice  of   27 

Record  of  cases  to  be  kept  by  boards  of  health   27 

Boards  of  health  to  give  immediate  notice  of,  to  school  committees       .      .  27 

Record  books  to  be  provided  for   27 

Towns  may  establish  hospitals  for   31 

Hospitals  to  be  provided  by  board  of  health   31 

Notice  to  be  given  of  infected  places                                                     .  32 

Flags  to  be  displayed   32 


142 


Dangerous  Diseases  —  Concluded.  Page 

Expenses  incurred,  how  paid   32 

Persons  infected  by,  may  be  removed  to  hospital   32 

Transportation  of  bodies  of  persons  who  have  died  of   57 

Dangerous  Diseases  of  Cattle.    (See  Cattle.) 


Deaths,  Registration  of.    (See  Registration  of  Births,  Marriages,  Deaths,  etc.) 
Deaths  by  Violence.    (See  Medical  Examiners.) 
Decisions  of  Supreme  Judicial  Court. 
Local  Boards  of  Health,  Regulations,  etc. 


Organization  of  city  board  of  health  .    11 

Power  to  make  regulations  may  be  exercised  by  an  ordinance       .      .      .  11 

Ordinance  prohibiting  swine  keeping  is  valid   11 

Prohibition  of  offensive  trades  by  ordinance  is  doubtful   12 

Title  of  city  physician  to  hold  office  in  board  of  health   12 

Nuisances. 

Keeping  of  swine  may  be  prohibited  by  regulation,  and  the  prohibition 

may  apply  to  the  whole  or  part  of  city  or  town   15 

Regulation  as  to  removing  offal  is  valid   15 

Notice  must  be  given  of  regulations,  but  previous  notice  to  parties  affected 

not  necessary  to  be  valid   15 

No  appeal  from  decision  of  board  of  health  as  to  existence  of  a  nuisance      .  16 

An  order  of  board  of  health  to  remove  a  nuisance  in  a  specific  .manner  is  void,  17 

Power  of  board  of  health  to  erect  dam  to  remove  nuisance  ....  17 
City  not  responsible  for  damages  from  work  done  under  authority  of  illegal 

votes  of  council   17 

Form  of  indictment  in  case  of  nuisance  from  piggery   17 

Piggery  in  which  large  numbers  of  swine  are  kept  is  a  nuisance     ...  17 

Evidence  as  to  custom  in  other  places  inadmissible   17 

Purpose  of  serving  an  order  in  writing  in  case  of  nuisance      ....  18 

Order  should  describe  nature  and  locality  of  nuisance   18 

Not  intended  to  dictate  method  of  removal   18 

What  constitutes  sufficient  information  as  to  locality  and  nature  of  a  nuisance,  18 
If  owner  or  occupant  neglects  to  remove  nuisance,  the  board  may  enter  and 

remove  it   19 

Either  the  owner  or  the  board  may  use  discretion  as  to  method  of  removal  .  19 

Board  of  health  may  resort  to  means  which  injuriously  affect  other  lands    .  19 

Proceedings  not  limited  to  owner  or  occupant   19 

Action  to  be  brought  in  name  of  city  or  town   20 

In  suit  to  recover  expenses  of  removal,  party  may  contest  facts  as  to  lia- 
bility  "...  20 

Records  of  proceedings  of  board  are  prima  facie  evidence  of  existence  of 

nuisance,  but  not  that  it  was  caused  by  defendant   20 

Fines  and  forfeitures  recoverable  only  in  name  of  treasurer  of  city  or  town  .  21 

City  marshal  or  other  officers  may  prosecute  for  fines   22 

Wet,  Rotten  and  Spongy  Lands. 
Order  to  remove  nuisance  under  Public  Statutes,  chapter  80,  section  32,  is 

void,  if  made  without  previous  notice  or  hearing   24 

Right  of  flowage,  etc   25 

Power  to  abate  nuisance  under  Public  Statutes,  chapter  80,  sections  30-32    .  25 

Jurisdiction  of  board  under  Public  Statutes,  chapter  80,  sections  30-32  .  .  25 
Assessment  cannot  be  levied  on  person  to  whom  notice  is  not  given  under 

Public  Statutes,  chapter  80,  section  32   26 

Board  may  act  by  a  committee  under  Public  Statutes,  chapter  80,  section  32  .  26 
If  a  board  has  given  notice  of  hearing,  it  need  not  give  new  notice  of  inten- 
tion to  make  assessment  under  Public  Statutes,  chapter  80,  section  32    .  26 
Legality  of  the  adoption  of  report  of  committee  on  assessment  of  damages 

under  Public  Statutes,  chapter  80,  section  32   26 


143 


Decisions  of  Supreme  Judicial  Court  —  Continued.  Page 
Infection,  Persons  sick  with  Infectious  Discsacs,  Hospitals,  etc. 
Notice  to  l>e  given  to  town  where  infected  person  belongs  before  action  is 

taken  to  recover  expenses   '28 

Form  of  notice  sufficient   28 

Authority  of  board  of  health  in  taking  possession  of  dwelling-house  under 

Public  Statutes,  chapter  80,  sections  40,  41,  75    29 

Owner  cannot  maintain  action  of  contract  against  town  for  use  of  house      •  29 
Authority  of  member  of  board  of  health  as  to  taking  possession  of  dwelling- 
house  and  furniture   29 

Damages  for  value  of  property  taken   29 

Quarantine. 

Owner  of  a  vessel  in  quarantine  not  liable  for  expenses  of  a  seaman  trans- 
ferred to  hospital  by  order  of  board  of  health   36 

Claim  of  lien  for  disinfection  of  rags   36 

Regulations  of  board  of  health  as  to  rag  disinfection  not  unreasonable  .      .  37 

Not  void   37 

Board  of  health  may  pass  regulations  without  hearing   37 

Disinfection  may  be  delegated  to  third  person   37 

Offensive  Trades. 

Effect  of  Public  Statutes,  chapter  80,  section  84,  as  to  assignment  of  offensive 

trades   38 

Board  may  prohibit  offensive  trade  without  notice   38 

Keeping  of  swine  not  a  trade   39 

Order  of  board,  under  Public  Statutes,  chapter  80,  section  84,  may  be  con- 
sidered as  a  general  regulation,  and  is  sufficient  if  it  shows  that  exercise 

of  such  trade  is  injurious  to  health   39 

Keeping  of  swine  an  employment,  and  board  has  authority  to  regulate 

under  Public  Statutes,  chapter  80,  section  84   39 

Defendant  entitled  to  notice  under  Public  Statutes,  chapter  80,  section  84     .  39 

Form  of  order  valid  under  Public  Statutes,  chapter  80,  section  84  .  39 

Board  of  health  may  regulate  as  well  as  prohibit  offensive  trades  ...  40 

State  board  must  give  notice,  local  boards  may  prohibit  without  notice  .      .  40 

Sufficiency  of  notice                            ;   40 

Authority  of  supreme  court  to  restrain  by  injunction,  the  board  acting  in 

good  faith  toward  interested  parties   41 

Bill  to  restrain  party,  how  properly  brought  and  signed   41 

Public  Statutes,  chapter  80,  section  89,  constitutional   41 

Private  rights  subordinate  to  public  welfare   42 

Rights  of  parties  secured  by  appeal  to  jury   42 

Order  of  board  altered  by  jury  in  proper  manner   43 

Further  appeal  to  superior  court  and  to  supreme  court   43 

Public  Statutes,  chapter  80,  section  92,  constitutional   44 

Right  to  continue  without  license   44 

Purpose  of  law  to  protect  the  business  and  not  the  building    ....  44 

Enlargement  or  extension  of  buildings   44 

Appeal  from  order  of  state  board  as  well  as  from  that  of  local       ...  45 
Bill  to  restrain  by  injunction,  how  properly  brought      .      .      .            .  45 
Pollution  of  Rivers  and  Water  Supplies. 
Petition  for  an  injunction  to  restrain  from  polluting  water  under  1884,  chap- 
ter 154,  defence  to   48 

Landlord  liable  for  acts  of  tenant  in  polluting  brook   49 

No  defence  that  plaintiff*  has  also  polluted  brook   49 

Reasonable  use  of  land  by  discharge  of  water   49 

Cemeteries  and  Burial-grounds. 
Ordinances  of  city  of  Boston  as  to  burials  held  to  be  regulations  relating  to 

health   22 


144 


Decisions  of  Supreme  Judicial  Court  —  Concluded.  Page 

Powers  of  boards  of  health   54 

"  Interment "  includes  removal  of  bodies   55 

Regulation  as  to  appointing  undertakers  and  refusal  of  latter  to  give  bond  .  55 
Removal  of  body  not  an  offence,  unless  with  intent  to  use  and  dispose  of  for 

dissection   57 

Adulterated  or  Unwholesome  Food  and  Drugs. 

Criminal  knowledge  essential  under  Public  Statutes,  chapter  208,  section  1  .  72 

(Milk.)    Public  Statutes,  chapter  57,  section  2,  constitutional       ...  75 

Authority  of  inspector  of  milk  to  appoint  agent,  etc.    .      .      .      .      .  76 

Definition  of  "  sealing  "  of  sample   76 

Sufficiency  of  complaint   78 

Criminal  knowledge  not  essential  under  Public  Statutes,  chapter  57, 

section  5   78 

Not  essential  to  affirm  that  milk  was  cow's  milk   78 

Agency  of  seller  •  78 

Form  of  indictment   78-80 

An  expert  in  use  of  lactometer  may  testify  to  its  results  in  a  given  case 

without  evidence  as  to  its  character   79 

Responsibility  as  to  sale  of  milk  under  Public  Statutes,  chapter  57,  section  5,  79 
Immaterial  in  what  manner  the  quality  has  been  reduced  below  the  stand- 
ard (Public  Statutes,  chapter  57,  section  5)  79 

Public  Statutes,  chapter  57,  section  9,  is  constitutional   79,  84 

Sufficiency  of  complaint   78-84 

Person  not  an  inspector  can  make  complaint   80 

Having  in  possession  and  keeping  with  intent  to  sell   80 

Intent  to  sell   80,  82 

Analyst's  right  to  use  memorandum  as  evidence   81 

Sealing  of  sample   81 

Tampering  with  sample  a  question  of  fact  for  jury   81 

Validity  of  statute   81 

Statutes  as  to  reservation  and  sealing  of  sample,  1884,  chapter  310,  section 

4,  impliedly  repealed  by  1886,  chapter  318,  sections  1,3.      .      .      .  81 

Evidence  that  milk  was  delivered  under  special  contract  immaterial  .      .  82 

Inspector  may  testify  as  to  results  of  analysis,  when   82 

No  proofs  required  that  defendants  were  "  partners  "   82 

Motion  to  quash  indictment   82 

Not  necessary  to  name  quantity  of  coloring  matter   82 

Government  cannot  be  required  to  choose  one  of  two  samples  ...  82 
Addition  of  coloring  matter  to  milk  is  punishable  whether  it  be  injurious 

or  not                                                                                     .  82 

( Oleomargarine.)   Cover  of  tub  removed,'  but  marked,  statutes  complied  with,  85 
(Veal.)    Criminal  knowledge  not  essential  under  first  clause  of  Public  Stat- 
utes, chapter  208,  section  2,  but  essential  under  second  clause  ...  87 

Defiling  and  corrupting  water  supply  prohibited   49 

Diphtheria. 

Householder  to  give  notice  of   27 

Physician  to  give  notice  of   27 

Pupils  affected  with,  not  to  attend  public  schools   28 

Transportation  of  bodies  of  persons  who  have  died  of   57 

Disinfection. 

Approval  by  board  of  health   27 

Diseases  of  Human  Beings.    (See  Dangerous  Diseases.) 
Diseases  of  Cattle.    (See  Cattle.) 

Diseased  animal  or  vegetable  substance,  sale  of   71 

Product  of  diseased  animal,  sale  of   71 

Milk  of  sick  or  diseased  cows,  sale  of   78 


145 


Page 

Distilleries,  refuse  of,  milk  of  cows  fed  on   78 

Disputed  analysis   96 

Dogs. 

Licenses  to  have  description  of  hydrophobia  printed  upon  them     ...  38 

Drainage.    (See  House  Drainage.) 

Not  to  be  discharged  into  sources  of  water  supply   48 

Experiments  in  purification  of   53 

Systems  of,  state  board  to  advise  as  to   53 

Tlans  of,  to  be  submitted  to  board   53 

Petitions  for  authority  to  introduce  systems   53 

Definition  of   54 

Drug. 

Definition  of  term   70 

Drugs. 

How  adulterated,  specifications   70 

Officinal  drugs  may  be  sold  as  called  for,  or  as  their  variation  is  made  known 

to  the  purchaser   70 

Penalty  for  fraudulently  adulterating  drugs   73 

Not  included  in  U.  S.  Pharmacopoeia  70,  95 

Dukes  County. 

Medical  examiner  districts   106 

Dwelling-houses. 

Unfit  for  occupancy,  may  be  vacated   20 

Essex  County. 

Medical  examiner  districts   106 

Factories,  workshops,  etc.,  inspection  of.    (See  Inspection  of  Factories,  etc.) 
Fines  and  Forfeitures.    (See  Penalties.) 

How  recovered   21 

Fish. 

Sale  of  tainted  or  damaged   89 

Flags  or  Signals. 

Removal  from  infected  places  prohibited   32 

Food. 

Adulteration  of,  prohibited   71 

Definition  of  term  "  food  "   70 

How  adulterated,  specification   70 

Fraudulent  adulteration  of       .      .       .       .      .      .    _ .       .      .      .  72 

Sale  of  unwholesome  food   89 

Provisions  of  act  as  to  unwholesome  food  not  to  be  in  force  unless  accepted 

by  city  or  town   .      .      .  .      .  91 

Search  warrants  for  unwholesome  food   90 

Franklin  County. 

Medical  examiner  districts   106 

Garbage. 

City  or  town  may  contract  for  disposal  of  garbage,  refuse  and  offal  .  .  14 
Hampden  County. 

Medical  examiner  districts   106 

Hampshire  County. 

Medical  examiner  districts   107 

Hospitals*.    (See  Lying-in  Hospitals.) 

Towns  may  establish   31 

Subject  to  orders  and  regulations  of  board  of  health   31 

Not  to  be  near  dwelling-houses   31 

Not  to  l)e  occupied  without  authority  ;  31 

Inmates  shall  be  subject  to  board  of  health   31 

Dangerous  diseases,  board  of  health  to  provide  for.  ......  31 

Regulations  of,  penalty  for  violating   32 


146 


House  Drainage.  Page 

Regulations  may  be  established  by  board  of  health   14 

Town  may  authorize  board  of  health  to  make  and  enforce  regulations  as  to,  14 

Householders. 

To  give  notice  of  infectious  diseases   27 

To  disinfect  rooms  as  approved  by  board  of  health   27 

Penalty  for  refusal  or  neglect   27 

Hydrophobia. 

Description  of,  to  be  furnished  to  city  and  town  clerks   38 

Ice,  Impure. 

Horses  not  to  be  driven  on  ice  of  ponds  used  as  water  supplies      ...  50 

Exception  as  to  persons  engaged  in  harvesting  ice  or  hauling  logs,  etc.  .  50 
State  board  may  hear  parties  interested  and  make  orders  concerning  sale 

of  ice   50 

Supreme  court  may  issue  injunction  to  enforce  orders   50 

Parties  may  have  right  of  appeal  to  a  jury   50 

Imitation  butter  to  be  marked  on  wholesale  and  retail  packages   ....  85 

Imitation  cheese  to  be  marked  on  wholesale  and  retail  packages   ....  85 
Infants.    (See  Protection  of  Infants.) 
Infected  Persons  and  Articles. 

Board  of  health  may  permit  removal  of   28 

Infected  persons  to  be  removed  to  separate  house    ......  28 

Care  of   28 

Expenses  incurred  in  care  of,  how  paid   28 

If  cannot  be  removed,  persons  in  neighborhood  to  be  removed      ...  29 

Infected  persons  may  be  restrained  from  travelling   29 

Warrant  may  issue  to  remove  infected  person   30 

To  secure  infected  articles   30 

To  take  up  houses,  etc.  .  •   30 

Officers  may  break  open  house   30 

Expenses  of  securing  and  purifying,  how  paid   30 

Compensation  for  houses,  etc.,  taken   30 

Prisoners  infected  to  be  removed   30 

Return  of  removal  to  be  made  to  court   31 

Injunction. 

To  prevent  nuisances   21 

To  prevent  use  of  building  for  hospital                 .  *   31 

To  restrain  offensive  trades  *.....  45 

To  enforce  orders  of  state  board  of  health  in  relation  to  pollution  of  ice 

supplies   50 


Decisions.    (See  Decisions  of  Supreme  Judicial  Court.) 
Inquest  Laws.    (See  Medical  Examiners.)  ' 
Inquests.    (See  Medical  Examiners.) 
Inspection  of  Butter.    (See  Butter.) 
Inspection  of  Drugs.    (See  Drugs.) 

Inspection  of  Factories,  Workshops,  School-houses  ai4d  O.ther  Public 


Buildings. 

Inspectors  to  be  appointed  .      «   66 

Factories  to  be  kept  clean  and  to  have  sanitary  provisions      ....  66 

Owner  or  occupant  to  make  proper  changes  ,    .  66 

Action  to  recover  expenses   66 

Inspector  to  notify  boards  of  health  of  defects   66 

Penalty  for  violation  of  acts  relative  to  inspection   67 

Factories  to  be  properly  ventilated   68 

Mechanical  ventilation  required  in  case  of  dusty  operations     ....  68 

Penalty  for  violation   68 

Four  weeks'  notice  requisite"  to  make  changes   68 


147 


Inspection  of  Factories,  etc.  —  Concluded.  Page 

Public  buildings  and  school-houses  to  have  proper  sanitary  provisions  .      .  69 

To  be  properly  ventilated   69 

Inspectors  to  issue  orders  as  to  sanitary  provisions   69 

Penalty  for  violation   69 

Definition  of  terms  used  in  acts  67,  69 

Inspection  of  Milk.    (See  Milk  and  Milk  Products.) 

Inspection  of  Provisions,  and  Animals  intended  for  Slaughter. 

Inspectors  to  be  appointed       .   *   89 

Compensation  of  inspectors   89 

Duties  and  powers  of  inspectors   89 

Inspectors  to  seize  diseased  meats,  etc   89 

Appeal  lies  to  board  of  health   89 

Veal  to  be  inspected   90 

Of  calf  under  four  weeks  to  be  seized   90 

Search  warrants  for  unwholesome  meats,  etc   90 

Penalty  for  knowingly  selling  diseased  meats   91 

Names  of  convicted  persons  and  places  of  business  to  be  published       .      .  91 

Not  in  force  unless  accepted  by  town  or  city   91 

Inspection  of  Vinegar.    (See  Vinegar.) 

Inspectors. 

State  board  of  health  may  appoint   71 

Thus  appointed  to  have  same  powers  as  local  inspectors   72 

Of  milk,  how  appointed   75 

Duties  and  powers   75 

Of  provisions,  how  appointed   89 

Duties  and  powers   89 

Of  vinegar,  how  appointed   93 

Of  milk,  to  enforce  statutes  as  to  vinegar  93 

Their  duties   93 

Interments.    (See  Burials.) 

Lard. 

Statute  relative  to   88 

Licenses. 

To  be  issued  to  persons  selling  milk  from  carriages  or  other  vehicles     .      .  77 

To  be  issued  to  persons  selling  oleomargarine  from  carriages  or  otherwise  .  87 
Liquors. 

Adulteration  of,  punished   73 

Lying-in  Hospitals. 

Selectmen  may  license   34 

Licenses  to  be  for  two  years,  but  revocable   34 

Subject  to  visitation  by  board  of  health,  police  and  selectmen        ...  34 

By  state  board  of  health,  when   35 

Penalties  for  keeping  hospital  without  license   35 

Marriages,  Registration   of.     (See  Registration  of  Births,  Marriages, 
Deaths,  etc.) 

Medical  Examiners. 

Certificate  of  cause  of  death,  when  to  be  made  by   57,  58 

Their  appointment   105 

Number  to  be  appointed  in  each  county   105 

Associate  examiner  for  Suffolk  county   108 

Term  of  office  and  removal   109 

Official  bonds   109 

Examination  of  bond  by  superior  court   109 

Discharge  of  surety  on  bond   10g 

Breach  of  condition  of  bond   109 

Salaries  and  fees  .'   109 


148 


Medical  Examiners  —  Concluded.  tage 

Duties  of  110 

When  to  make  an  autopsy   110 

District  attorney  or  other  magistrate  to  be  notified,  if  death  was  caused  by 

violence   110 

Inquest,  when  to  be  held   Ill 

Witnesses  may  be  summoned   Ill 

Justices  to  report  when,  where  and  how,  deceased  came  to  his  death    .      .  Ill 

Witnesses  may  be  bound  over  in  certain  cases   Ill 

Justices  to  issue  process  for  arrest  of  person  charged  with  commission  of 

offence   Ill 

Inquest  may  be  ordered  by  district  attorney  or  by  attorney -general      .      .  112 

Chemist  may  be  called  to  aid  examination   112 

Disposal  of  body   112 

Compensation  for  services  in  landing  body   112 

To  take  charge  of  money  or  other  property  found  on  or  near  the  body  .      .  113 

Penalty  for  neglecting  to  give  up  property   113 

Accounts  to  be  rendered  and  audited   113 

Fees  of  trial  justices  for  services  at  inquests   113 

Section  17  of  chapter  84,  Public  Statutes,  amended   113 

Fees  of  medical  and  other  witnesses   113 

To  make  returns  to  secretary  of  state   114 

Fees  for  recording  and  making  returns   114 

Penalty  for  refusal  or  neglect   114 

Secretary  of  state  to  furnish  blank  books  and  forms  for  record      .      .      .  114 

To  cause  returns  to  be  bound  and  results  to  be  published    .      .      .      .  114 
Medical  examiner  to  file  a  report  of  autopsy  with  district  attorney  and  certify 

as  to  its  necessity   114 

District  attorney  shall  examine  reports  and  state  opinion  as  to  necessity  of 

autopsy   115 

Medical  Societies. 

Not  to  confer  degrees  except  as  authorized  by  legislature      ....  65 

Penalty  for  violation   65 

Medicine. 

Adulteration  of   73 

Middlesex  County. 

Medical  examiner  districts   107 

Milch  Cows. 

Garbage  and  offal  not  to  be  fed  to   82 

Milk  and  Milk  Products. 

Three-fifths  of  general  appropriation  for  inspection  of  food  and  drugs  to 

be  expended  in  enforcing  statutes  as  to  milk   71 

Inspectors,  appointment  of   75 

Duties  and  powers  of         .      .   75,  84, 86, 93 

Of  inspectors  of  state  board   72,  84 

Samples  to  be  reserved  for  the  defendants   72,  76 

Penalty  for  imitating  or  tampering  with  seal   76 

Neglect  or  refusal  to  deliver  sample   76 

No  evidence  to  be  received,  when   76 

Peddlers  to  be  licensed   77 

Persons  selling  milk  in  stores  and  markets  to  be  registered     ....  77 

Penalty  for  selling  adulterated  milk   78 

Garbage  and  offal  not  to  be  fed  to  milch  cows   82 

Vessels  from  which  skimmed  milk  is  sold  to  be  marked        ....  83 

Standard  of  skimmed  milk   83 

Penalties  for  violation  of  statutes                                                     76-78,  82,  83 

Standard  of   83 


149 


Milk  and  Milk  Products  —  Concluded.                                                  '  Page 

Publication  of  names  of  offenders   84 

District  courts  may  try  milk  cases   81 

Inspectors  of,  to  enforce  statutes  as  to  butter  and  cheese        ....  86 

To  enforce  statutes  as  to  vinegar   93 

Nantucket  County. 

Medical  examiner  district   107 

Norfolk  County. 

Medical  examiner  districts   107 

Notice. 

Regulations  of  boards  of  health  to  be  published   15 

Board  of  health  may  order  nuisance  removed  without  notice,  when      .      .  16 

Wet  lands,  notice  of  hearing  concerning   22 

Local  board  of  health  may  prohibit  an  otfeusive  trade  without  previous  notice,  40 

Burial  regulations,  concerning   55 

Tombs,  when  closed  .  '   55 

Decisions.    (See  Decisions  of  Supreme  Judicial  Court.) 
Nuisances 

Regulations  respecting   15 

Penalties  for  violating  regulations   15 

Regulations  to  be  published   15 

To  be  removed,  prevented  or  destroyed   16 

Adjudication  of  board  of  health  conclusive   17 

Removed,  how  may  be   19 

Court  may  order  removal   20 

Injunction  may  issue  to  prevent   21 

Board  of  health  may  enter  premises  to  destroy   21 

Expenses  incurred  in  removal  of   21 

Wet,  rotten  and  spongy  lands  deemed  a  nuisance   22 

Persons  injured  by  such  nuisance  may  apply  for  abatement  ....  22 

Board  of  health  to  appoint  hearing   23 

Form  of  notice   23 

Board  may  abate  nuisance  after  hearing   23 

Return  to  be  made  to  town  clerk   24 

When  board  refuses  or  neglects  to  act  the  superior  court  may  appoint  com- 
missioners   24 

Persons  aggrieved  by  refusal  to  abate  nuisance  may  appeal  to  county  com- 
missioners  24,  26 

Party  appealing  to  give  notice  to  opposite  party   26 

Costs  and  expenses  of  appeal,  how  paid    .    26 

Board  of  health  may  grant  permit  to  remove   28 

Offal. 

City  or  town  may  contract  for  disposal  of  garbage  or  offal  .  .  .  .  14 
Offensive  Trades.    (See  Swine-slaughtering  Associations.) 

Places  may  be  assigned  for   38 

May  be  prohibited  without  notice   38 

Assignments  to  be  recorded   38 

May  be  revoked  by  the  board  of  health   38 

Form  of  order  prohibiting   39 

Assignment  may  be  revoked  by  court   40 

Damages  caused,  how  recovered   40 

Orders  of  prohibition  to  be  served  on  occupant   40 

Appeal  allowed  from  board  of  health                                                   .  41 

Business  not  to  be  exercised  pending  appeal   41 

Jury  may  alter  order  of  board  of  health   42 

Costs,  how  recovered   43 

Buildings  not  to  be  used  for,  without  permission   43 


150 


Offensive  Trades  —  Concluded.  Page 

Building  used  for,  not  to  be  enlarged   44 

State  board  of  health  may  prohibit   45 

Supreme  court  may  issue  injunction  to  prevent   45 

Decisions  concerning  offensive  trades.    (See  Decisions  of  Supreme  Judicial 
Court.) 

Oleomargarine. 

To  be  stamped  or  marked  on  Avholesale  and  retail  packages  ....  85 

Persons  selling  from  carriages  to  be  licensed   87 

Other  persons  to  be  registered   88 

Orders. 

To  be  in  writing   18 

How  served   18 

Form  of   18 

Decisions  as  to  orders.    (See  Decisions  of  Supreme  Judicial  Court.) 
Penalties. 

For  violating  regulations  as  to  house  drainage   14 

Violating  regulations  respecting  nuisances   15 

Failure  to  remove  nuisance   1G 

Occupying  dwelling-house  after  order  to  quit   20 

To  inure  to  towns   21 

Neglect  by  householder  to  give  notice  of  small-pox,  etc.  .      ...      .      .  27,  117 

By  physician  to  give  notice   27 

Infected  persons  travelling   29 

Refusing  to  assist  officer  in  case  of  infected  persons  and  articles    ...  30 

Establishing  hospital  without  authority   31 

Removing  flags  displayed  in  infected  places                  ^  32 

Violating  regulations  in  hospitals   32 

Neglect  to  be  vaccinated   33 

Keeping  lying-in  hospitals  without  license   35 

Violation  of  regulations  concerning  infants  taken  to  board      ....  35 

Refusing  admission  to  house  where  infants  are  boarded   35 

Violating  quarantine  regulations   36 

Refusing  to  obey  orders  in  relation  to  offensive  trades   40 

Occupying  building  for  offensive  trades   43,  45 

Violation  of  regulations  of  swine-slaughtering  establishments       ...  47 

Corrupting  and  defiling  water   49 

Bathing  in  water  supply   50 

Driving  horse  on  ice  of  pond  used  for  water  supply   50 

Water  boards,  etc.,  failing  to  make  certain  returns   52 

Burial-grounds,  violation  of  regulations  ,   54 

Burials,  violation  of  regulations   55,  56 

For  violation  of  statutes  as  to  transportation  of  bodies   57 

Sepulture,  violation  of   57 

Infected  animals,  violating  orders  of  boards  of  health   61 

Violating  regulations  concerning   61-64 

For  issuing  diplomas  without  authority   65 

For  violation  of  statute  as  to  color-blindness   65 

For  violation  of  laws  relative  to  sanitation  of  factories  and  workshops  .       .  66 

For  violation  of  law  as  to  ventilation  of  workshops  and  factories   ...  68 

For  neglecting  to  comply  with  orders  of  inspector  of  school-houses,  etc.  .  69 
For  violating  statutes  relative  to  sanitary  provisions  in  workshops  and 

factories   67,  68 

For  failing  to  obey  orders  of  inspector  relative  to  public  buildings  and 

school-houses   69 

For  hindering  or  obstructing  an  officer,  or  otherwise  violating  the  statutes 

as  to  adulteration   72 

For  selling  corrupt  or  unwholesome  provisions   72 


151 


Penalties  —  Concluded.  *  Ei 

For  fraudulently  adulterating  bread  or  other  food  

For  fraudulently  adulterating  liquors  

For  fraudulently  adulterating  drugs  or  medicine  

For  violating  statute  as  to  sale  of  poisons  73, 

For  imitating  or  tampering  with  seal  

For  selling  milk  without  license  

For  selling  milk  without  registering  

For  selling  adulterated  milk  

For  feeding  garbage  and  offal  to  milch  cows  

For  selling  milk  from  which  cream  has  been  removed  

For  selling  skimmed  milk  not  marked  

For  adulterating  skimmed  milk  %. 

For  assisting  in  violation  of  law,  or  hindering  or  obstructing  an  inspector  or 

his  agent  .  *  83- 

Lowcr  courts  may  impose  penalties  for  violation  of  milk  laws 

For  fraudulent  sale  of  butter  and  cheese  

For  defacing  or  erasing  marks  

For  marking  spurious  butter  as  4<  dairy  "  or  "  creamery  " 

For  failure  to  be  licensed  

For  violation  of  law  relative  to  lard  

For  neglect  to  be  registered  

For  sale  of  veal  less  than  four  weeks  old  

For  sale  of  unwholesome  food  

For  selling  poultry  not  properly  dressed  

For  sale  of  tainted  and  damaged  fish  92 

For  sale  of  adulterated  vinegar  

Violation  of  statute  as  to  vinegar  

For  violation  of  act  relative  to  sewers  1 

For  violation  of  act  relative  to  pollution  of  water  supplies      ....  1 

PlI AKMAC0PO3IA,  U.  S. 

The  legal  standard  of  officinal  drugs  

Other  pharmacopoeias  or  standard  works  on  materia  medica  recognized 

Provision  as  to  change  of  standard  

Physicians. 

To  boards  of  health  

How  appointed  

Term  of  office  

Salary  of   . 

To  give  notice  of  small-pox  and  other  dangerous  diseases  .... 

In  hospitals  for  dangerous  diseases  31, 

Certificate  of  cause  of  death  to  be  given  by  

Physician,  city,  how  appointed  

Plymouth  County. 

Medical  examiner  districts  I1 

Poisons. 

Record  to  be  kept  by  persons  selling  

Penalty  for  failure  or  neglect  to  do  so  

For  refusal  to  show  record  

Labels  to  be  attached,  with  name  of  antidote  

Penalty  for  neglect  to  attach  label  

For  giving  false  name  by  purchaser  

Pollution  of  Water.    (See  Water  and  Water  Supply.) 

Powers  and  duties  of  state  board  of  health  1! 

Privy  Vault. 

Not  to  be  established  in  a  sewered  street  without  permission  of  board  of 

health  .1 

Board  may  declare  vault  a  nuisance  and  order  its  discontinuance  .      .      •  11 


152 


Prosecutions.  Page 

Certain  provisions  as  to   71 

State  board  of  health  to  report   72 

Protection  of  Infants, 

i          Persons  taking  infants  to  board  to  notify  board  of  health       ....  35 

Penalty  for  violating  regulations  of  boards  of  health   35 

Boards  of  health  may  enter  and  inspect  houses   35 

May  establish  regulations   35 

Penalty  for  violation  of  statute,  or  refusal  to  admit  board  of  health      .      .  35 

Provisions. 

Inspectors  of,  how  appointed   89 

Seizure  of  .   89 

Board  of  health  to  inspect   89 

Publication  of  names  of  convicted  persons   84,  91 

Public  Buildings. 

Inspection  of.    (See  Inspection  of  Factories,  etc.) 

Quarantine. 

Towns  may  establish   35 

Assent  of  town  to  be  obtained                                                            .  35 

May  be  established  by  two  or  more  towns       .......  35 

Boards  of  health  may  establish  quarantine  of  vessels   36 

Regulations  "...  36 

Suspected  vessels  to  be  ordered  to  quarantine  ground   36 

Penalty  for  violating  regulations   36 

Expenses,  how  paid   36 

Railroad  Corporations. 

Statute  relative  to  transportation  of  dead  bodies   103 

Record. 

To  be  kept  by  board  of  health   17 

Of  dangerous  diseases   27 

Secretar3r  of  Commonwealth  to  furnish  books  for   27 

Of  assignments  of  places  for  offensive  trades   38 

Of  land  taken  by  swine-slaughtering  associations   46 

Of  regulations  in  relation  to  diseased  animals   60 

Of  land  taken  for  isolation  of  diseased  animals   61 

Cattle  commissioners  to  keep  records   63 

Of  sales  of  poisons   73 

Of  inspection  items   94 

Of  deaths  by  violence  to  be  transmitted  to  secretary  of  Commonwealth       .  114 
Registration  of  Births,  Marriages,  Deaths,  Divorces  and  Returns  of 
Medical  Examiners. 

City  and  town  clerks  to  record  births,  marriages  and  deaths  ....  98 

Parents  and  others  to  give  notice  of  births  and  deaths   98 

Physicians  to  certify  deaths      .   99 

Penalty  for  neglect  or  refusal  to  certify   99 

Sextons,  undertakers  and  others  to  make  returns  to  city  and  town  clerks     .  99 

Burial  or  removal  of  body  forbidden  till  certificate  has  been  given       .      .  99 

Undertakers,  how  licensed   100 

Physicians  to  return  monthly  lists  of  births   100 

Clerks  to  give  notice  that  they  will  furnish  blanks   100 

Penalty  for  neglecting  to  report   100 

Clerks  to  send  copies  of  records  to  secretary  of  Commonwealth     ...  100 

Record  to  be  evidence  in  legal  proceedings   100 

Fees  of  clerks  and  registrars   100 

Penalty  for  refusal  or  neglect  to  record   101 

Superintendent  of  state  almshouse  to  make  records   101 

Clerk  of  town  in  which  state  almshouse  is  located  exempt  from  certain  duties,  101 


153 


Registration  of  Bikths,  MAB.flA.GES,  Deaths,  etc.  —  Concluded.  tage 

Secretary  of  Commonwealth  to  furnish  blank  books  and  forms     ...  101 

To  cause  returns  to  be  bound  and  to  report  results   101 

Registrars  may  be  chosen  by  certain  cities  and  towns   102 

Secretary  to  prosecute  for  penalties   102 

Cities  and  towns  may  make  and  enforce  rules  and  regulations  .  .  .  102 
Clerk  or  registrar  to  make  certified  copies  of  certain  facts  for  other  cities  and 

towns   102 

Physicians  to  certify  primary  and  secondary  causes  of  death  in  case  of 

veterans   102 

Railroad  corporations  and  others  not  to  carry  certain  bodies  without  proper 

precautions  and  permit  from  health  authorities   103 

Persons  performing  marriages  to  keep  records  and  make  returns  ...  103 

Record  of  marriage  to  be  evidence  of  the  same   103 

Certificate  from  consul  to  be  evidence   103 

City  or  town  may  cause  its  record  to  be  copied   103 

Returns  of  statistics  of  divorce  to  be  made  to  secretary  of  state   ...  104 

Secretary  to  furnish  blanks   104 

To  prepare  and  publish  registration  report   104 

Medical  examiners  to  make  returns  to  secretary  of  state       .      .      .      .  114 

Fees  for  recording  deaths  by  violence   114 

Penalty  for  neglect   114 

Secretary  to  furnish  blank  books  and  forms   114 

To  publish  the  results    .      .      .      .  .   114 

Reports. 

Of  state  board  of  health  9,  52,  72 

Of  city  boards   13 

Of  cattle  commissioners   63 

Monthly  and  annual,  to  be  made  by  analyst   96 

Rivers.    (See  Water  and  Water  Supply.) 

Rules  and  regulations  as  to  inspection  and  analysis      .......  94 

Samples. 

To  be  furnished  to  officers  or  agents  of  board   71 

Of  food  and  drugs  to  be  sealed  for  benefit  of  defendant   72 

Of  milk  products  to  be  sealed  for  benefit  of  defendant   75,  86 

To  be  kept  in  a  secure  place   95 

To  be  numbered   96 

Portion  to  be  reserved  for  defendant   96 

Scarlet-fever.    (See  Diphtheria.) 

School  Committee. 

Not  to  allow  pupils  ill  with  infectious  disease  at  school   28 

Not  to  allow  unvaccinated  children  at  school   34 

School-houses,  Inspection  of.    (See  Inspection  of  Factories,  Workshops,  etc.) 

Schools,  Public. 

Instruction  in  physiology  and  hygiene,  and  effects  '  of  stimulants  and 

narcotics,  required  in   65 

Seal. 

Imitating  or  tampering  with,  prohibited   76 

Search  Warrants. 

For  unwholesome  food   90 

Secretary  of  Commonwealth. 

To  furnish  blank  books  for  recording  infectious  diseases        ....  27 

Secretary  of  State  Board  of  Health. 

To  be  elected  by  board      .    9 

Duties  of   9 

Not  to  be  a  member  ex  officio  of  board   9 

Board  may  elect  secretary  pro  tempore   9 


154 


Secretary  of  State  Board  of  Health  —  Concluded.  Page 
To  transmit  copy  of  notice  of  cases  of  small-pox  to  state  board  of  lunacy 

and  charity   27 

To  supply  a  description  of  hydrophobia  to  city  and  town  clerks    ...  38 

To  direct  the  inspection  of  food  and  drugs   94 

To  direct  the  analysis  of  food  and  drugs   95 

To  deliver  samples  to  analysts   95 

To  receive  reports  of  analysts   96 

To  deliver  portion  of  reserved  sample  to  defendant  or  his  attorney       .      .  96 

To  submit  cases  for  prosecution   96 

To  receive  deposit  in  disputed  cases   96 

To  receive  appeal  from  decision  of  analyst   97 

To  receive  and  report  on  standard  of  strength   97 

Seizure. 

Of  provisions   89 

Sewage  Disposal. 

Sewage  not  to  be  discharged  into  water  supply       .      .    *  .      .      .      .  48 
State  board  of  health  to  conduct  experiments  relative  to  sewage  disposal      .  53 
To  consult  with  and  advise  certain  persons  and  manufacturing  corpora- 
tions as  to  sewage  disposal   53 

Outlines  of  plans  of  sewage  disposal  to  be  submitted  to  state  board  of  health,  53 

Legal  definition  of  "  sewage  "   54 

Cities  and  towns  may  purchase  land  for  sewage  disposal  with  approval  of 

state  board  of  health   117 

Sewerage. 

State  board  of  health  to  consult  with  and  advise  authorities  of  cities  and 

towns  as  to  systems  of  sewerage   53 

Petitions  to  legislature  as  to  systems  of.sewerage  to  be  accompanied  with 

advice  of  state  board    .   53 

Sewers. 

City  boards  of  health  may  prepare  and  enforce  regulations  relative  to  .  .  14 
Town  board  of  health  may  be  authorized  to  regulate  connection  of  houses 

with  sewers   14 

Cities  and  towns  may  contract  with  other  cities  and  towns  to  build  sewers  .  48 
State  board  of  health  to  recommend  legislation  and  plans  for  systems  of 

sewers   52 

Vaults  not  to  be  established  without  authority  on  streets  having  sewers, 

under  certain  conditions   116 

Buildings  to  be  connected  with  sewer  when  required  by  board  of  health  .  118 
Skimmed  Milk. 

Vessels  or  cans  to  be  marked  when  used  for  sale  of   83 

Standard  of   83 

Slaughter-houses.    (See  Offensive  Trades.) 

Small-pox.    (See  Dangerous  Diseases.) 

Powers  of  state  board  of  health   10 

Householders  to  give  notice  of   27 

Physicians  to  give  notice  of   27 

Local  board  of  health  to  notify  state  board   27 

Secretary  of  state  board  to  transmit  copy  to  board  of  lunacy  and  charity    .  27 

Forfeiture  in  case  of  neglect  or  refusal  to  notify   27 

School  committee  not  to  allow  pupils  sick  with  small-pox  to  attend  public 

schools   28 

Certain  provisions  not  to  apply  to   32 

Persons  infected  with,  when  may  be  removed   32 

Expenses  incurred,  how  paid   32 

Patients  sick  with,  not  to  be  sent  to  state  almshouse   33 

How  provided  for      .  /   30 


155 


Standard.  Page 

U.  S.  Pharmacopoeia  and  other  works  recognized,  how   73 

Of  milk   83 

Of  skimmed  milk   83 

Of  vinegar   93 

Not  fixed   97 

Deviation  from,  how  reported   97 

State  Board  of  Health. 

Governor,  with  advice  and  consent  of  council,  may  appoint  ....  9 

Of  what  number  to  consist   9 

Term  of  office    .      .   9 

Vacancies,  how  filled   9 

To  be  provided  with  rooms   9 

Meetings   9 

By-laws   9 

Reports   9 

Secretary  to  be  elected  by  board   9 

Duties  of  secretary   9 

Not  to  be  a  member  ex  officio  of  board  *  9 

Board  may  elect  secretary  pro  tempore   9 

Salary  of  secretary   9 

Personal  expenses  of  board,  how  paid   9 

Other  expenses  of  board,  how  paid   10 

To  take  cognizance  of  interests  of  health  and  life  of  citizens  ....  10 

To  make  certain  sanitary  investigations  and  inquiries   10 

To  gather  and  diffuse  information  on  such  matters   10 

To  advise  the  government  as  to  the  location  and  sanitary  conditions  of  public 

institutions         .    ■   10 

Contagious  diseases,  duties  in  case  of   10 

Concurrent  powers  with  local  boards   10 

To  be  notified  by  local  boards  of  cases  of  small-pox   27 

To  visit  and  inspect  lying-in  hospitals   34 

To  hear  parties  relative  to  nuisance  from  offensive  trades       ....  45 

May  order  persons  to  cease  and  desist  from  carrying  on  such  trades  .      .  45 

Penalty  for  non-compliance   45 

To  approve  the  taking  of  land  by  swine-slaughtering  associations  ...  46 

To  approve  plans  for  buildings  to  be  used  by  swine-slaughtering  associations,  47 

To  establish  regulations  for  business  of  swine-slaughtering  associations    .  47 

May  hear  complaints  and  make  orders  concerning  the  sale  of  impure  ice      .  50 

"Water  boards  and  companies  to  make  certain  returns  to   50 

To  publish  triennial  returns   50 

To  furnish  blanks  to  water  boards,  etc   50 

To  have  oversight  and  care  of  inland  waters   52 

May  employ  engineers,  clerks  and  assistants   52 

To  report  its  doings   52 

To  recommend  legislation  and  plans  of  sewerage   52 

To  examine  waters  used  for  domestic  purposes   53 

To  recommend  measures  to  prevent  pollution   53 

To  conduct  experiments  as  to  drainage  of  manufacturing  establishments  .  53 

May  employ  experts   ,53 

To  consult  with  authorities  of  cities  and  towns,  firms  and  individuals  as  to 

water  supply  and  sewerage   53 

To  consult  with  persons  and  corporations  as  to  sewage  disposal  to  prevent 

pollution  of  water  supplies   53 

Authorities  of  cities  and  towns,  etc.,  to  give  notice  of  intentions  and  to 
submit  plans  relative  to  water  supplies  and  disposal  of  drainage  and 

refuse   53 


156 


State  Board  of  Health  —  Concluded.  Page 
All  petitions  to  the  legislature  for  authority  to  introduce  water  supplies 
and  sewerage  systems  to  be  accompanied  with  a  copy  of  the  advice 

of  the  board   53 

To  bring  cases  of  neglect  to  notice  of  attorney-general   53 

Location  and  plans  of  crematories  to  be  submitted  to  board  ....  58 
To  take  cognizance  of  interests  of  public  health  relative  to  sale  of  food  and 

drugs   71 

To  make  inquiries  relative  to  sale  of  food  and  drugs   71 

May  appoint  inspectors,  analysts  and  chemists   71 

May  expend  money  for  carrying  out  provisions  of  act   71 

To  report  prosecutions  and  expenditures   72 

Rules  and  regulations  of   94 

May  approve  the  taking  of  land  in  cities  and  towns  for  sewage  disposal       .  117 

May  hold  public  hearing  relative  to  the  same   117 

To  give  notice  of  hearing   117 

To  have  general  supervision  of  streams  and  ponds  and  their  tributaries  used 

as  sources  of  water  supply   118 

To  have  authority  to  examine  and  inquire  as  to  pollutions  and  their 

causes   118 

To  receive  complaints  from  city  and  town  authorities  as  .to  pollution  of 

streams  and  ponds  used  as  sources  of  water  supply   118 

To  appoint  hearings  with  reference  to  the  same   118 

To  give  notice  of  such  hearings   118 

May  prohibit  deposit  of  polluting  material   118 

May  order  the  offender  to  desist  and  remove  such  material  .      .      .      .  118 

Prohibition  of  use  of  structure  conditional   119 

Shall  not  prohibit  agricultural  use  of  soil  if  human  excrement  is  not  used  .  119 

Provision  for  appeal   119 

Order  of  board  to  be  complied  with  pending  appeal   119 

Verdict  of  jury,  how  enforced   119 

Court  may  enforce  orders  of  state  board  of  health   120 

Penalty  for  violation  of  law   120 

This  statute  does  not  impair  or  repeal  existing  laws  as  to  pollution     .      .  120 

Hearings  to  be  held  in  city  or  town  where  nuisance  is  alleged  to  exist       .  120 

Exceptions  as  to  certain  streams   120 

Summary  of  powers  and  duties   121 

Printing  and  distribution  of  reports  129,  130 

Statistics,  Supervisors  of,  Board  of.    (See  Supervisors  of  Statistics.) 
Suffolk  County. 

Medical  examiners     108 

Supervisors  of  Statistics,  Board  of. 

Law  relating  to                                                                  .      .      .  130 

Swine-slaughtering  Associations. 

Corporations  may  be  formed   46 

May  take  land  with  approval  of  state  board   46 

Liability  for  damages        .   46 

Damages,  how  assessed   46 

May  carry  on  slaughtering  business   47 

Buildings  to  be  approved  by  state  board   47 

Business  to  be  regulated  by  state  board   47 

Each  member  may  slaughter   47 

Penalty  for  violating  regulations   47 

Tomrs.    (See  Cemeteries.) 

Board  of  health  to  exercise  certain  powers   54 

May  be  closed  by  board  of  health   54 

Penalties  may  be  established  by  board  of  health   54 


157 


Tombs  —  Concluded.  i-agi 

Notice  to  be  given  before  closing   5i 

Appeal  lies  from  order  of  board   51 

Appeals  to  be  tried  by  jury   5! 

Town  Boards  of  Health. 

How  chosen   II 

Of  what  number  to  consist   li 

May  choose  a  health  officer   li 

Selectmen  to  be,  if  none  chosen   li 

Vacancies,  how  filled   1 

May  appoint  physician   IS 

May  establish  salaries  and  fees  of  employees   15 

May  be  authorized  to  regulate  house  drainage   14 

May  contract  for  disposal  of  garbage   14 

May  appoint  agent   14 

Powers  and  duties  of  agents   lc 

Shall  retain  charge  in  certain  cases  to  exclusion  of  overseers  of  poor     .  1  1" 

May  appoint  agents   If 

Nuisances,  to  make  regulations  respecting   It 

To  publish  regulations   L 

Nuisances,  to  destroy,  remove  or  prevent   1. 

To  order  owner  or  occupant  to  remove  nuisance   ll 

Order  for  abatement,  how  served   18 

Own^r  failing  to  comply,  board  to  remove  nuisance   19 

Unfit  dwelling-houses  may  be  vacated   20 

May  order  nuisance  removed   20 

Injunction  may  issue   21 

Expenses  incurred  recoverable   21 

Fines  to  inure  to  use  of  towns   21 

May  enter  premises  to  examine   21 

Wet,  rotten  and  spongy  lands,  powers  of  board  over   22 

Party  aggrieved  may  appeal  to  superior  court  and  must  give  notice  to  board 

of  health   22 

Persons  injured  may  apply  to  board  for  abatement   22 

Board  of  health  to  appoint  a  hearing   23 

Form  of  notice,  how  served   23 

Board  after  hearing  may  abate  nuisance   23 

Damages,  how  assessed   23 

Party  aggrieved  may  apply  for  jury,  but  must  give  notice  ....  24 

Return  to  be  made  by  board   24 

Superior  court  may  appoint  commissioners  if  board  refuses  to  act      .      .  24 

Persons  aggrieved  at  award  of  damages  may  apply  for  a  jury    ...  24 

Appeal  to  county  commissioners  in  case  of  refusal  of  board  to  act       .      .  26 

Party  appealing  to  give  notice  to  opposite  party   2G 

Expenses  of  commissioners,  how  paid   26 

To  receive  notices  from  householders  of  existence  of  diseases  dangerous  to 

health  ..............  27 

To  approve  methods  of  disinfection   27 

To  receive  notices  from  physicians  of  dangerous  diseases       ....  27 

To  keep  records  of  such  reports   27 

To  give  immediate  information  to  school  committees   27 

To  be  provided  with  blank  books  for  such  records   27 

To  notify  state  board  of  cases  of  small-pox   27 

Penalty  of  neglect  or  refusal  to  notify  state  board   28 

Nuisances,  infected  articles  or  sick  persons,  may  grant  permits  to  remove    .  28 

Certificates  of  health  required  on  recovery  of  scholars  from  small-pox,  etc.  .  28 

Infected  persons,  may  make  provision  for  28,  29 


158 


Town  Boards  of  Health  —  Continued.  Page 

Infected  persons  may  be  restrained  from  travelling   29 

Two  justices  of  peace  may  issue  warrant  to  remove  infected  persons  under 

direction  of  board   30 

Justice  of  peace  on  application  of  board  may  issue  warrant  to  secure  infected 

articles   30 

Officers  under  direction  of  board  may  take  houses  for  safe  keeping  of  infected 

articles   30 

Officers  under  direction  of  board  may  break  open  houses  and  command  aid,  30 

Expenses  to  be  paid  by  owner  of  goods   30 

Town  to  pay  for  houses  and  services  of  men   30 

May  order  removal  of  prisoners  infected  with  dangerous  disease   ...  30 

Return  of  removal  to  be  made  to  superior  court   31 

Towns  may  provide  hospitals  for  infectious  diseases                  «  31 

Hospitals  for  persons  with  dangerous  diseases  subject  to  order  of  board    .  31 

Such  hospitals  not  to  be  near  dwellings  in  adjoining  towns  ....  31 

Not  to  be  occupied  without  authority   31 

Physicians,  nurses,  etc.,  to  be  subject  to  hoard  of  health    .      .      .      .  31 

Hospitals  for  persons  with  dangerous  diseases  to  be  provided  by  board     .  31 

Flags  to  be  displayed  in  case  of  infectious  diseases   32 

Penalty  for  violating  regulations  as  to  hospitals   32 

Certain  provisions  not  to  apply  to  small-pox   32 

Expenses,  how  to  be  paid   32 

Small-pox  patients  not  to  be  sent  to  state  almshouse      .      .      .      .  •    .  33 

Towns  may  provide  for  vaccination  under  direction  of  board  of  health  .      .  34 

To  certify  in  case  of  lying-in  hospitals   34 

To  visit  lying-in  hospitals   34 

Persons  taking  infants  to  board  to  notify  board      .   35 

May  enter  and  inspect  houses  where  infants  are  boarded    ....  35 

May  establish  quarantine  of  vessels   35 

Offensive  trades,  places  may  be  assigned  for   38 

May  be  prohibited   38 

Assignments  to  be  recorded   38 

May  be  revoked  by  board  of  health   38 

May  be  revoked  by  court   40 

A  person  injured  may  have  an  action  for  damage   40 

Orders  of  prohibition  to  be  served  on  occupant   40 

Board  may  prevent  exercise  of. trade   40 

Provision  for  appeal  from  order  of  prohibition   41 

Trade  not  to  be  exercised  meanwhile  '  41 

Verdict  of  jury  may  alter,  affirm  or  annul  order  of  board      ....  42 

Costs,  how  assessed   42 

Slaughter-houses  not  to  be  used  without  written  consent  of  authorities  .      .  43 

May  prohibit  the  use  of  tombs  by  undertakers  for  purpose  of  speculation    .  54 

May  close  burial-places   54 

May  make  regulations  relative  to  burial-places   54 

Penalties  may  be  established  for  violation  of  regulations  of  tombs       .      .  54,  55 

To  give  notice  of  regulations   55 

Notice  to  be  given  to  interested  parties  before  closing  tombs  ....  55 

Provision  for  appeal  from  order  of  board  of  health   56 

Appeals  to  be  tried  before  a  jury   56 

To  approve  certificate  of  cause  of  death   56 

Undertakers  to  be  licensed   57 

To  give  certificates  in  case  of  transportation  of  bodies  of  persons  who  have 

died  of  contagious  disease   57 

Penalty  for  disinterment  without  authority   57 

Duties  in  relation  to  cattle  diseases   60-62 


159 


Town  Boards  of  Health  —  Concluded.  Tage 

Duties  in  relation  to  sanitary  defects  in  factories  and  workshops    ...  07 

On  seizure  of  diseased  meats  by  inspector,  appeal  lies  to  board     ...  89 

May  seize  veal  in  certain  cases   90 

May  require  certain  buildings  to  be  connected  with  sewer      ....  118 

Transportation. 

Of  bodies  of  persons  who  have  died  of  infectious  disease,  how  regulated  .  57 
Undertakers. 

To  be  licensed  by  boards  of  health  of  towns,  and  mayor  and  aldermen  of 

cities   57 

To  make  returns  to  city  and  town  clerks   99 

Vaccination. 

Children  to  be  vaccinated   33 

Mayor  and  aldermen  may  require  it   34 

Selectmen  may  require  it  .      .      .  '  .  .   34 

Penalty  for  neglect     .    34 

Towns  to  furnish  means   34 

Inmates  of  factories  and  public  institutions  to  be  vaccinated  ....  34 
School  committees  not  to  allow  unvaccinated  children  to  attend  public 

schools  r  *  K  ;  •      •      ■  34 

Towns  may  make  further  provisions   34 

Vault.    {See  Privy.) 

Veal. 

Regulations  as  to  sale  of   90 

Penalty  for  sale  of  meat  of  calf  less  than  four  weeks  old      ....  90 

Ventilation  of  Factories  and  Workshops.    (See  Inspection  of  Factories, 
etc.) 

Vessels. 

Board  of  health  may  establish  regulations  concerning  nuisances    ...  15 

May  examine  and  remove  nuisances   16 

May  establish  quarantine   35 

Vinegar. 

Sale  of  adulterated   92 

Containing  injurious  ingredients   92 

Appointment  of  inspectors   93 

Compensation  of  inspectors   93 

Inspectors  of  milk  to  enforce  statutes  as  to  vinegar   93 

Sale  of  adulterated,  prohibited   93 

Legal  standard  of   -    .  93 

Penalty  for  violation  of  statutes  as  to  91,  93 

Vital  Statistics.    (See  Registration  of  Births,  Marriages,  Deaths,  etc.) 
Water  and  Water  Supply. 

Sources  of  water  supply  not  to  be  polluted   48 

Cities  and  towns  may  unite  to  protect  water  supplies   48 

Certain  rights  not  to  be  impaired   48 

Certain  rivers  exempted   48 

Penalty  for  defiling  domestic  water  supply   49 

Bathing  in  water  supply  prohibited   50 

Penalty  for  driving  horse  on  ice  of  certain  ponds   50 

Exceptions  to  such  penalty   50 

Boards,  commissions  and  companies  to  make  triennial  returns  to  state  board,  50 

Forms  of  returns  required   ,".1 

State  board  to  furnish  blanks  and  recover  penalties   52 

To  have  supervision  of  inland  waters   52 

May  employ  engineers,  clerks  and  assistants   52 

Shall  report  its  doings   52 

Shall  recommend  legislation   52 


160 


Water  and  "Water  Supply  —  Concluded. 

State  board  shall  examine  quality  of  inland  waters  for  domestic  use 

Shall  recommend  measures  to  prevent  pollution  .... 

Shall  have  authority  to  conduct  experiments       ......  53 

Shall  consult  with  authorities  of  cities  and  towns  as  to  water  supply  and 
drainage   

Shall  consult  with  and  advise  corporations  as  to  sewage  disposal 

Shall  bring  cases  of  neglect  to  notice  of  attorney-general  . 

Shall  report  cases  to  legislature  which  call  for  legislation  . 
Decisions  relative  to.    (See  Decisions  of  Supreme  Judicial  Court.) 

Act  of  1890  to  prevent  pollution  of  

State  board  of  health  to  have  supervision  of  sources  of  water  supply 

To  receive  complaints  as  to  deposits  of  polluting  material  . 

To  hold  hearings  

May  prohibit  pollution  


Prohibition  limited    119 

Damages  to  be  paid  by  city  or  town   119 

May  be  determined  by  jury   119 

Cultivation  of  soil  allowed   119 

Appeals,  how  made  •   119 

Failure  to  appeal   119 

Orders  to  be  complied  with  during  pendency  of  appeal   119 

Authority  of  verdict   119 

Court  may  enforce  orders  of  board   120 

May  restrain  by  injunction   120 

Penalty  for  violation  .      .      .      .  •   120 

Act  not  to  impair  existing  provisions   120 

Certain  rivers  excepted   120 

Hearings  to  be  held  in  city  Avhere  the  pollution  is  alleged  to  exist  ...  120 

Wet,  Rotten  and  Spongy  Lands. 

May  be  deemed  nuisances   22 

Powers  and  duties  of  boards  of  health   22 

Expenditure  in  such  cases  limited  to  $ 2,000,  if  no  appropriation  has  been 

made  by  city  or  town  "...  22 

Party  aggrieved  may  appeal  to  superior  court  and  must  give  notice  to  board 

of  health  or  health  officer   22 

Nuisances,  how  abated   22 

Proceedings  to  abate  nuisance   22 

Damages,  and  upon  whom  assessed   23 

Return  to  be  made  to  city  or  town  clerk   24 

Board  of  health  refusing  to  act,  party  may  apply  to  superior  court       .       .  24 

Commissioners  may  be  appointed   24 

Appeal  to  a  jury   24 

Decisions  relative  to.    (See  Decisions  of  Supreme  Judicial  Court.) 

Worcester  County. 

Medical  examiner  districts   108 

Workshops,  Inspection  of.    (Sec  Inspection  of  Factories,  Workshops,  etc.) 


